New Beginnings
by Kairou Watoshimi
Summary: After the well sealed itself, Kagome couldn't bare living in a shrine house that easily brings back unwanted memories. Moving in with her cousin, Kagome finds herself thrust into a world where nothing makes sense anymore.
1. To Live

**For some reason, I had never been a fan of crossover FanFictions but lately I have gotten into Prince of Tennis and Inuyasha. Of course, most of the FanFictions around this site is not what I was looking for. So I decided to create my own and because this type of challenge is new to me I hope I manage to make the characters stay **_**in**_** character despite the challenge this story will prove to be.**

**Also, this FanFiction is going to be pure crack. Seriously. Not crack as in funny but crack as in 'there is no way this type of situation could happen no matter how you look at it'. So, if the first couple of paragraphs make your eyes bleed, I apologize and direct you towards the back button. Thank you.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Prince of Tennis, Inuyasha or any of their characters.**

New Beginnings  
>(1) To Live<p>

Moving back to Japan in time for Ryoma to start his first high school year at Seishun Academy High was probably the best decision Nanjirou had ever made. As a matter of fact it was such a good decision that Ryoma didn't rip Nanjirou's soft porn magazines up into Karupin's litter box as additional cat litter for a week.

Nanjirou noticed, of course and teased him about it for three days straight before Ryoma got his revenge by burning said magazines during the Echizen's going away barbeque party. Rinko only smiled softly as the two Echizens argued, not once regretting the weeks it took her to beg her boss for a transfer back to Japan. There was only one that that one of the Echizens did regret and that was Nanjirou regretting that he will have to be reduced back to reading porn magazines instead of babe watching on the California beach.

Ryoma didn't think he had ever seen his father so heart broken.

Life didn't change much for Ryoma upon returning to Japan and entering Seigaku High as a first year; everyone was still the same and for that, he was glad. Glad because he couldn't imagine if Kikumaru stopped calling him "Ochibi", Inui stopped collecting data, Horio stopped being… well, being Horio. He was glad that he had his old teammates back (his American team had been and will always be _mada mada_), minus Taka-senpai who, while still on the tennis team, was not a fellow regular.

Taka-senpai has been replaced by Sasabe-senpai who is, by the way, not at all related to the idiot Ryoma had twist-served to the face when he first came to Japan for middle school. Sasabe-senpai is lankier and had more round curves than any self-respecting teenage boy should have but had perhaps one of the most powerful hits in the high school tennis world which makes people question where he hides all his muscle in what looks to be skin and bones.

Despite his power, Sasabe-senpai will never replace Taka-senpai, he will always be _mada mada _to Ryoma because he doesn't have split personalities nor does he yell out random English phrases when given a racket. When the names of the Regulars were first given out, Ryoma knew that it would be a long time before he got used to Sasabe-senpai.

He could handle that change though.

However, a couple weeks into rediscovering his freshmen tennis prodigy position, Ryoma found out that everything _was _going to change and it was all because his cousin was coming to live with his family for a while. It wasn't as if he had anything against her (_Really! He didn't!) _but her moving back meant _change _and seeing her _friends _again. And he really, really, _really _didn't like her friends.

Especially that loud one.

_Kind of like Kikumaru-senpai, _he silently thought. Except Kikumaru-senpai is loud in a happy sort of way. That friend of his cousin's was loud in an angry sort of way and Ryoma wasn't sure if he wanted to deal with that again. _It's like Taka-senpai's burning,_ he compared again. Except in a serious I'm-going-to-_really_-burn-(or-hit)-you sort of way.

Presently, Ryoma finds himself staring at the picnic table where his teammates were currently sitting around and silently debated with himself whether or not he should sneak away. After all, if he did so now he might still be able to catch his father before he drove off. He pretended he didn't see an excited Kikumaru-senpai waving at him while simultaneously jumping up and down. He swallowed and his hand automatically flew up to the brim of his cap and he pulled it down. Hard. Ryoma spun around, ready to walk away from the overexcited aura surrounding his teammates only to be jerked back roughly.

_Damn, so close._

"Momo-senpai—" he managed to choke out before Momoshiro's hard arm muscles flex and wound up around Ryoma's neck and the young tennis prodigy finds himself unable to breathe, much less speak.

"You can't just pretend you didn't see us," Momoshiro said cheekily, "you can't!"

Ryoma ceased his struggling once he felt another pair of arms wrapped themselves tightly around him. It was impossible to struggle against both Kikumaru and Momoshiro, after all. He was also, most likely going to die anyway. The two older boys pushed Ryoma harshly onto the bench and stood in front of him with large grins on their face.

Ryoma wrinkled his nose. "Che," he said softly and pulled down his cap again. Apparently, he wasn't going to escape this get-together.

It took Inui exactly five seconds to figure out that there was something wrong with Ryoma. "Echizen is exactly thirty-six point two-five percent quieter than usual," he muttered under his breath but his words were still loud enough for those around him to hear. "There is a seventy-two percent chance that Echizen just woke up and a remaining twenty-eight percent that he is actually upset about something."

Ryoma scowled; he wasn't ready to deal with Inui-senpai and his data so early in the afternoon. "Leave me alone," he mumbled, ignoring Tezuka when he shot Ryoma glare. What he really wanted to say was: "Go to hell, senpai."

"Eh? Ochibi is sad?" Kikumaru asked, looking as if he was about to cry himself. "Why is ochibi sad? Tell senpai and senpai will make it all better, nya!" He flutters around the younger boy, trying to catch his attention. Or, more specifically, trying to get some _positive attention _from Echizen who was glaring at him but also refusing to speak.

"Tell us," Kikumaru whined. He pulled Ryoma's arm and shook it while attempting to look like a kicked puppy. "Tell us! _Tell_ us! Te—"

"Are you sick?" Oishi interrupted, worried. "Hurt?"

"Need some tennis?" Momoshiro asked. "That always helps."

Ryoma frowned and couldn't help but think that he sounded awfully lot like his old man. And him, of course (because tennis is the cure for everything) but it wasn't something he would ever admit out loud.

"Hungry?" Oishi continued.

"Had a wet dream?" Fuji asked, deciding to throw in his own two cents.

Silence.

Complete and utter silence.

Everyone turned their head around to stare at Fuji in silent shock and-or horror, except for Tezuka, of course, who's only reaction was a slight twitch of his left eyebrow and a gleam of his glasses and Ryoma who was already used to perverted comments at the most unusual of times, courtesy of his father.

"No," Ryoma responded because he knew that perverted comments would only get worst from there. And because he didn't want Oishi-senpai to have a heart attack from thinking the worst, "My cousin's moving in."

Another small hush fell around the group. "Isn't that a good thing though?" Momoshiro finally asked. "I thought you liked living with Meino-san!" And: "I mean, she cooks for you!" he practically screams out. "What more do you need?"

"Not Nanako," Ryoma said, rolling his eyes as if it was obvious. "Kagome."

"Whoa!" Momoshiro shouts again, this time in surprise. He jumps back, knocking into an equally shocked Kikumaru. "You got _another _cousin?"

Ryoma looked up at him and gave him a look. _Are you stupid? _His raised eyebrows seemed to ask.

Unsure where they should actually feel stupid or just simply annoyed, Momoshiro settled down with laughing nervously. "So, you don't like your cousin? What's wrong with her?"

Ryoma scowled even harder and hoped that scowling so much wouldn't leave a permanent mark on his face. He already told them why he was in such a bad mood. Why does his teammates insist on poking into every single detail of his life? "I don't have anything against _her," _he answered after much debating with himself. "It's just some of her friends."

They didn't get it. "Who are moving here too?"

"No," Ryoma said. "They already live here."

"Right," Momoshiro said. Then: "I don't get it."

Ryoma sighed. He hoped his voice doesn't disappear from overusing it. "When I was young Kagome used to come and visit us whenever we were in Japan for vacation." He frowned, recalling memories he rather left alone. "She had a group of really close friends back then and they used to come over every day," Ryoma continued.

"So…"

"If Kagome comes, they'll start coming over again," Ryoma said. _Stupid, _remained unspoken but Ryoma's expression said it all.

"You could just ignore them," Fuji answered helpfully.

"Yea!" Kikumaru said. "Like you do with people you don't like."

"Or us," Momoshiro offered, nodding his head in agreement.

Ryoma bit his tongue just as Fuji chuckled. "I'm pretty sure you could lump that in with "people Echizen doesn't like." His grin grew when Echizen made no move to correct him.

"Well," Oishi said slowly, ignoring Fuji, "think of it this way: It's probably been years since your cousin has been here. Maybe she lost contact with them. They couldn't have been _that_ close."

Ryoma looked up again and glared.

"Oh," Oishi said softly. "They were _that_ close, weren't they?"

"Closer," Ryoma responded.

"So," Fuji asked, "why don't you like them?"

"They're weird," Ryoma answered back automatically. He paused, gave his teammates a good, long look and then added: "Hmm…"

_Weirder than all of you,_ seemed to remain unspoken.

Fuji chuckled.

"And one of them…" Ryoma surpassed a shiver as he thought of cold, amber eyes and long silver hair. "He's too much like—" he cut himself off when he met Tezuka's eyes and looked away. "Never mind. He's my sponsor, so seeing him again won't make a difference."

"Sponsor?"

"I haven't seen him in a while," Ryoma said, shrugging, no longer wanting to continue the conversation. He pulled down his cap for good emphasis.

Inui scribbled something in his notebook and looked up. "I am very interested to meet this cousin of yours, Echizen. And her friends of course. It's not everyday that—"

"No," Ryoma said flatly.

"Oh!" Kikumaru said clapping his hands together, completely ignoring the younger boy. "That's such a great idea! We can make her feel right at home!"

Ryoma stared at him, horrified.

"Kikumaru," Tezuka said softly, speaking up for the first time.

"Yes!" Kikumaru responded at once and jumped up and around. "Tezuka agreed! Let's do it!"

* * *

><p>Tezuka most definitely did not agree. And definitely did <em>not<em> want to meet Echizen's cousin (he could be playing tennis instead). However, those who no doubt _were_ going were members of the tennis club and therefore Tezuka's responsibility. He wasn't about to let Echizen embarrass himself in front of his cousin because Fuji couldn't keep his hands to himself. Or because Kikumaru and Momoshiro couldn't stop teasing their super rookie.

"I apologize for any inconvenience we may cause you," Tezuka said politely as he bowed.

Kikumaru ignored the obvious glare directed at him and continued trying to hold Echizen in a headlock.

No wonder he was short, Tezuka thought. Kikumaru and Momoshiro stopped any blood from flowing to Echizen's head.

"Don't be silly," Echizen's mother said brightly. Tezuka could tell she meant it. "Kagome-chan was so nervous coming back here and I'm sure she'll feel welcome with so many people here to greet her."

_Like hell,_ Tezuka thought uncharacteristically. He looked back at his teammates and frowned.

Rinko turned towards her son. "Aren't you excited Ryoma?"

"No."

"Don't be such a brat, kid," Nanjirou said. "I remember when you were younger… you used to chase her around naked yelling, "Kaggy-chan, Kaggy-chan!'"

Tezuka had to hide a cough as Echizen's deepened his scowl. Everyone else began laughing, not bothering to spare the tennis prodigy his pride. "That was a long time ago," he muttered.

The walk to the train station was relatively short but Tezuka had the distant feeling that the only reason they were walking was because there were so many people tagging along. He decided that he was going to make his teammates carry Higurashi-san's luggage for the trouble as punishment. Of course he could always make them run laps but…

"So," Momoshiro asked in a low voice while everyone was waiting for Ryoma's cousin. "Is your cousin hot?"

Echizen gave him a flat stare. "The last time I've seen her was when she was _seven_."

Momoshiro was not fazed. "Okay, okay. But was she cute then at least?"

"No."

"No?"

"No."

"Oh!" Rinko suddenly called out. "She's here!" She waved her hand widely in the air and ran towards the onslaught of people getting off the train. "Kagome-chan!"

"Whoa," Kikumaru said. "Your mom _really_ likes her, eh?"

"Not as much as my old man." They watched as Nanjirou—famous Nanjirou—throw himself into the air towards Kagome, possible tears leaking out of his eyes.

"So," Rinko said pulling her husband off of her niece. "How was your ride?"

"It was okay," Kagome answered, laughing as they made their way back towards the group. "It was a little long though."

"I'm just glad you're here."

"Yea," Kagome said softly. "I just needed to get away." She looked almost sad for a moment before brightening up when she saw Ryoma. "Hey!" she squealed out happily. "Ryoma! I haven't seen _or_ talked to you in forever!" She moved to hug him and Tezuka watched as Ryoma tensed up. Kagome pulled herself back before actually touching her cousin. "Sorry," she said sheepishly. "I forget myself sometimes."

"Hmm…"

"The brat's shy," Nanjirou said, cutting between his son and niece. "Those," he pointed around, "are his teammates."

"Oh." Kagome's eyes widened with shock, noticing them for the first time. "Hello! I'm Kagome."

With so many people not raising her hand to shake wasn't a surprise but it didn't stop Fuji from grasping her hand and raising it towards his lips. "A pleasure to meet you," he said with a warm smile, kissing the back of her palm. He turned his head slightly towards Ryoma and gave him a small wink.

Ryoma scowled.

Kagome shuddered and wondered if she just met another version of Miroku. God knows that she had enough of _that _in her lifetime… not that she would mind if Miroku was still… No. Kagome frowned inwardly and scolded herself. She wasn't supposed to be thinking of them anymore. She _promised _herself she wouldn't. It was the entire reason why she had begged her mother to let her stay with the Echizens. _Stop living in the past, Kagome_, she told herself. _It's time to live in the present._

Noticing that she was just standing there, lost in thought, with her hand still in Miroku the second, Kagome flushed. "It's nice to meet you too," she said tightly and pulled her hand away. Or at least attempted to but he had a tight on it. "Um?"

"Fuji." Tezuka's voice was cutting. Here was damage control; stop Fuji from embarrassing Echizen.

"Oh sorry," Fuji said. "I'm just in shock that Echizen has such a beautiful cousin."

Kagome flinched visibly as Nanjirou hummed in agreement in the background.

"Fuji!"

"Yes, yes." Fuji gave another bright smile, dropping Kagome's hand and giving Ryoma another wink. "Sorry. It won't happen again."

_Like hell it won't,_ Ryoma thought.

Kagome frowned. She would think that the guy was attempting to make a fool out of her, but she noticed the silent interaction between Ryoma and Fuji… quite a surprise actually. Even as a young boy, Ryoma had always been the no-nonsense kind of guy. Kagome was surprised that he stuck around.

"So, Higurashi-san, do you play tennis?" Momoshiro asked after all introductions have been made and they were making their way back to the Echizen House. Tezuka, had of course made most of the regulars carry around her luggage despite her embarrassment and protest.

"Tennis?" Kagome asked, completely confused. "Why would I play tennis?" She took in the shocked faces for a moment before it hit her. "Oh!" Kagome exclaimed. "Sorry, I keep forgetting." She giggled nervously. "I'm not much of a sports person. I'm too clumsy for that."

"Aw," Momoshiro said. "That's too bad. Will you be attending school with us though?"

"Seishun Academy High, right?"

"Yep! That's the one!"

Kagome smiled. "I guess I am then!"

"You should come and watch us practice sometime!" Kikumaru said good-heartily.

Tezuka pressed his lips in a thin line. _Practice,_ he wanted to tell the redhead, along with everyone else who was nodding in agreement, _is not a show for random audiences. It should be taken seriously._ Of course, he was also tempted to send his teammates out running laps but he didn't think that would be polite in front of the Echizens.

"…of course. It's been so long since you've stayed with us but your room's in the exact same spot," Rinko continued.

"It's totally fine if you want to continue sleeping with uncle too," Nanjirou cut in cheekily.

Kaogme flushed again but managed to keep herself from slapping her uncle silly. "I don't think that's appropriate, uncle."

"Non—"

"Enough, old man," Ryoma snapped as he aimed a kick at the back of his father's knees.

"Hey!" Nanjirou cried out as he fell forward slightly, but managed to catch himself in time before he face-planted into the ground. He whipped his head around. "You ungrateful litt—"

"Nanjirou," Rinko said firmly. "That's enough."

Everyone fell into a tense silence but Tezuka noticed Echizen giving his father a satisfied smirk when Echizen-san wasn't looking. _A brat through and through,_ Tezuka thought.

It took a couple moments before they fell into another comfortable conversation, although it lacked the usual childish excitement one usually feels when being surrounded by the Regulars of Seigaku High.

Everyone followed as Rinko opened the gates to the house. She looked back at Ryoma and his teammates with a smile on her face. "You guys should come in and stay for dinner. Kagome-chan deserves a welcome party."

Kagome flushed. "Oh! You don't need to—"

"Don't be silly," Rinko said. "Of course we do."

Tezuka frowned. "I wouldn't want to interrupt—"

"We would _love_ to stay, nya," Kikumaru interrupted happily, utterly oblivious to the fact that his captain was currently tallying up the number of laps he would have to run later.

"You won't be interrupting anything," Rinko said to Tezuka as she pushed everyone into the house. "If I didn't want you guys to eat with us, I wouldn't have asked." She looked at Momoshiro who was carrying most of Kagome's luggage. "Feel free to put those over there," she said, pointing to the open area, "and I'm going to start making dinner."

"Need me to help? I'm pretty good at cooking" Kagome asked, silently adding, _I can make a mean cup of ramen,_ as Ryoma rolled his eyes and began making his way up to his room, completely ignoring that his teammates were at his house.

"No, it's fine," said Rinko. "Why don't you invite your friends over too?"

Kagome paused. "Uh, friends?"

"Yes. You know, the ones that you always hung out with whenever you were here." Rinko frowned. "Don't tell me you lost contact with them?" She shook her head. "You guys were so close."

"Uh?" It was Kagome's turn to frown; she couldn't remember having any close friends when she lived here for a summer a couple years ago. Ryoma had been overseas then so she couldn't have hung out with any of _his_ friends. Although… there was that one girl, the one that Kagome had enjoyed getting ice cream with but Kagome wouldn't call them close.

"You lost contact with them?" Rinko asked. "That's such a shame."

"I—u-ih…" she paused. How does she say it without sounding completely crazy? "I never had any real friends here, Aunt Rinko…"

That made more than one person in the room pause. "Sure you did," Nanjirou said, speaking up for the first time in a while. "I used to see you and the brats run yourselves silly here."

Rinko gasped. "Oh!" she cried, alarming the young priestess. "Don't tell me…"

"What?" Kagome asked, panicking. "Tell you what?"

There was silence for a few moments. Rinko and Nanjirou looked at each other nervously and Regulars shifted where they stood uncomfortably. This was obviously a family thing and no one knew what to say.

Ryoma, who was standing on top of the stairs, surprisingly, was the first one to speak up. "When we called," he said. "Grandfather said that you fell down the well, hit your head and got amnesia."

Kagome felt her face go red in anger. "When was this?"

Ryoma shrugged.

"I guess that must be it then," Kagome said, laughing nervously. Inwardly she wondered whom in the world her _friends_ were because she certainly could _not _remember them and she most definitely did _not_ have amnesia. _Has the whole world gone crazy?_ she wondered. _Or is it just me?_ The well had sealed itself only a couple of weeks ago but already, it felt like a dream. _Maybe I did fall down the well and got amnesia. Maybe the federal era really was just a dream. Am I crazy?_

She clutched her right hand and fisted it tightly. Her priestess powers shot up to the surface of her skin and crackled with energy as it came in contact with the air. Kagome looked around making sure that she wasn't drawing anyone's attention and sighed. _It definitely was_ not _a dream._ She couldn't help but feel relieved but such relief lasted only for a moment before she remembered. _Who in the world are my_ friends?

**Kagome has officially entered the world of tennis princes. Stay tune and watch as other Inuyasha character comes in… because trust me, they will!**


	2. The Beginning of Everything

**I would like to explain something I said back in the author's note at the beginning of Chapter 1. When I said that the stories in this site wasn't what I was looking for I didn't mean that they sucked. I meant that _they were not what I was looking for_. When I began reading Prince of Tennis / Inuyasha crossovers I did not want a Kagome who was perfect at tennis. I did not want a Kagome who just happens to be able to kick Ryoma's ass. That doesn't mean the FanFictions that did have Kagome doing those things sucked; it just meant that _it was not what I was looking for_. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Prince of Tennis, Inuyasha or any of its characters.**

New Beginnings  
>(2) The Beginning of Everything<p>

"Hey," Kagome greeted quietly, not wanting to wake the rest of the family up as she descended from the stairs. "Why are you up so early?" Sure, she hadn't been with Ryoma since they were seven but she _had _always taken him to be the sleeping beauty type of guy.

Ryoma stared at Kagome without answering her question and was only a little annoyed when she stared straight back without flinching or looking away. "Morning practice," he finally answered and then shifted a bit uncomfortably when silence fell between them. He realized that he did seem a little too distant and silent to his cousin who had been nothing but nice to him but truth to be told, Ryoma did feel a little awkward around her (not that he would admit it to anyone). Years of not seeing someone you used to take baths with can do that to a person. "Why are you up so early?"

Kagome laughed. "Oh, I'm usually awake at this time." She thought back to the time where Inuyasha would kick her away to hunt for his precious jewel shards. "I guess," she said slowly and softly," I just got used to it."

Pausing in the middle of tying his shoelaces, Ryoma's head snapped up to her and he stared as if she had grown two heads. Which, in his case she might as well have.

Kagome giggled and waved him off. "So, tennis practice, huh? May I come watch?"

He hesitated. "Sure."

* * *

><p>Tezuka was not pleased.<p>

Kikumaru had, of course invited Higurashi-san to watch their tennis practices so he wasn't completely surprised that she had come. However, he didn't think it would be so soon and that Echizen might have also wanted his cousin to watch. Wasn't he always the one that complained that people cheered too loudly during tennis matches? And practices? And just life in general?

Higurashi wasn't loud though—_thank god—_unlike all the other squealing fan girls and Horio. Higurashi was the ideal tennis fan, sitting outside the fences watching the practice matches silently despite looking a tad bit bored. Then again, Tezuka wondered for a brief moment if he would prefer it if Higurashi _was _loud and obnoxious because _that _was something he (and the other tennis members) were already used to and could easily ignore.

But no, Higurashi was a distraction.

And he could see why (he isn't asexual despite what Fuji says). With her large blue eyes, wavy black hair and how she just fits perfectly in the school uniform, Tezuka would admit that she's rather pretty. But pretty doesn't become an excuse to stop doing drills for a chance to talk to her. _Apparently, _Tezuka thought, _that Second Year think it is._

"Matsumoto," he called out in his stern (what his old middle school Regulars liked to call), captain, don't-you-dare-mess-with-me voice. "Thirty laps!" A bit harsh, he knew so he silently blamed it on Echizen who should have left his cousin home.

Instead of immediately abandoning his flirtation with Higurashi and jumping up to run his laps, the Second Year turned and gaped. Despite being a Second Year it was only Matsumoto's first year in high school tennis and he obviously hadn't had Tezuka as a captain before. "B-but—"

"Forty!"

"Just run your laps, man," someone hissed. "Trust me when I say he'll make you run triple-digits if you keep arguing."

Kagome almost snickered but she caught sight of Tezuka's glare, which, much to her surprise was directed _at _her. She flushed under his intense glare and looked away.

Just as he was about to walk away Tezuka heard the girl mumble, "Bastard." He twitched in shock. "Bet he thinks it's all my fault. Reminds me of a certain dog." Then: "Or two." And: "What stick got stuck up his ass?"

Unsure how he was supposed to respond to words he obviously was _not _supposed to hear—or, at least, he hoped he wasn't, Tezuka walked stiffly away from her only to catch Echizen's usual smirk and knowing look. Apparently, the younger boy not only had eyes that could "see all" but ears that could "hear all" too. He stiffened up further and refrained from assigning laps especially since he has no legitimate reason.

_That guy seriously needs to learn how to loosen up, _Kagome thought, oblivious to the uncomfortable atmosphere she had caused Tezuka. She watched lazily, chin in her hands with her elbows propped up on her knees as people continued hitting the tennis ball back and forth with such intensity Kagome swears that there had to have been some type of supernatural strength behind it all. She shivered; _I've spent way too much time in the federal era._

Out of the corner of her eye, Kagome caught sight of a girl with her hair pulled up in a high ponytail and instantly turned towards it. She took in the girl's figure, eyes tracing familiar curves and sighed. _Everything is reminding me of the federal era, _Kagome thought. She sighed again and closed her eyes, her trained ears filtering through noise, listening to the girl's voice as she chatted happily with her friends. She imagined the flickering flames of a campfire and Sango talking happily with Shippo.

_Stop._

Kagome gritted her teeth, hearing them grind together and snapped her eyes open again. She watched the Sango-like figure for a few more seconds before turning her attention back towards the tennis courts where Ryoma his apparently famous _Twist Serve_ (she knew this from the awed voices of fellow watchers) and wondered what was so special about it. Nothing could prevent the twitch she had when the ball sailed upwards and smacked her cousin's Third Year opponent in the face. _I always knew he was some sort of sadist, _Kagome thought.

She sighed—last time, she promised herself—and watched as Ryoma and a new opponent began hitting the green tennis ball back and forth a couple more times. _Good lord, this is boring, _Kagome thought. Then again, she had spent the past year of her life chasing demons across Japan… When a yawn threatened to erupt from her, Kagome decided that it would be a good idea to leave tennis practice watching to the people who were actually interested in the thing and familiarize herself with her new school.

She stood up and brushed the dirt from her uniform just as Momoshiro decided that Echizen had enough showing off on his own and that he needed to perform a special move of his. Unfortunately, he was much too caught up in his upcoming attack to hold back his racket and strength and sent the tennis ball flying straighter, faster and more powerful than he should have. It flew faster than most people could react, straight through a hole in the fence and it took him milliseconds to realize that the ball was heading towards Echizen's cousin. "Higurashi-san!" he called out in panic. "Wat—"

Once Kagome felt the hair on the back of her neck stand up, she reacted. Her reaction was slower than she would have liked, however. If the _Jack Knife _was a demon Kagome would have already been dead. But chasing demons, dodging attacks whose speed rivals the speed of sound and fighting against a half-demon who wanted to dominate Japan had made the _Jack Knife _seem like child's play to Kagome. Kagome turned her head sharply towards the charging ball and jumped back at the last second. She would have been able to dodge it if she hadn't clumsily landed on her foot wrong and throwing her entire balance off, sending her falling towards the ground. Her heart pounded violently in her chest and Kagome reacted without thinking.

The tennis ball hit her barrier with a loud pop before recoiling and flying off in the opposite direction. It hit the fence hard and landed on the ground, smoking. _Holy shit, _Kagome thought.

Silence.

Then everybody started talking at once.

"Higurashi! Momoshiro called out, running out of the tennis courts and towards her, parting viewers that had gathered around the fallen priested like the sea. "Holy—" he cut himself off. "Are you okay?"

Kagome groaned. "I'm fine."

"She just got hit by the _Jack Knife!" _someone called out in shock, voice carrying above the additional murmurings of the gathering crowd.

"Oh my god," a freshman said. "Where were you hit?"

"I said I was _fine,_" Kagome snapped, trying to calm her racing heart. She clutched her hands into tight fists underneath her, trying to keep them out of view as she attempted to pull her wild priestess powers back into her.

_What just happened? _Kagome asked herself. She closed her eyes tightly and replayed the scene in her head. The ball shouldn't have reacted to her barrier that strongly unless… _Oh dear lord, _Kagome thought. _That ball was filled with demonic energy! _She swallowed hard and looked up at Momoshiro, wondering if he was hiding something. Once the crackling energy of her died down Kagome allowed her senses to expand out; taking in the familiar feelings of her powers interacting with her surroundings and then shuddered when it came in contact with the still-smoking tennis ball. _It _is _filled with demonic energy, _Kagome thought. _But… _She looked over at Momoshiro again and frowned, sensing no demonic energy from the him. _So confusing._

"Take her to the nurse's office." Tezuka said, his voice soft but able to cut through the chatter of surrounding students and shutting them up. He made his way towards Kagome and the crowd parted for him.

"I'm _fine," _Kagome emphasized as she scrambled to stand up. She yelped slightly as a sharp pain stabbed through her ankle the moment she decided to put weight on it. It took her by surprise and she fell again.

Tezuka frowned. "You are hurt."

"Thank you, Captain Obvious," Kagome mumbled, rolling her eyes.

Tezuka's frown deepened.

Kagome felt a twinge of shame, realizing just then how rude she was being to someone who was obviously concerned about her. "Sorry," she said, looking up and into Tezuka's brown orbs. They were unreadable, not even a flicker of emotion and it made her think of cold amber eyes. She looked away and noticed for the first time that everyone was staring at her. Kagome flushed; must she be the center of attention everywhere she went?

"Um," she squeaked out. "I'll just go to the nurse's now…" She stood up slowly, not wanting to put too much weight on her wounded ankle and frowned when no one took the hint. "Don't you guys have some tennis balls to hit or something?" she asked.

The crowd parted, slowly at first but speeded up when Kagome began glaring.

"Buchou," Ryoma said softly. "I'm taking Kagome to the nurse's."

"Ah."

Kagome looked up in surprise although she looked satisfied too. "Ryoma! It's totally fine, you don't—"

Ryoma pulled her arm before she could get another word out and dragged her towards the school. He ignored the glare from his captain (for man-handling his injured cousin) and the looks from his teammates (for showing possible concern towards someone).

"I do know where the nurse's office is, you know," Kagome said softly. "There's the school map posted just outside the school. You really don't need to escort me there." She grinned cheekily, trying to show emotion she did not feel, "Unless, of course, you're worried about me or something."

Ryoma did not respond to her obvious tease. He remained silent for a few moments. "What was that light?"

Kagome froze. "Light? What light?"

The young tennis prodigy turned around to face his cousin. He frowned but refused to explain himself, knowing very well that Kagome knew _exactly _what he was talking about.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Kagome replied stubbornly as she picked up her page again only to stop once she noticed the flat look Ryoma was giving her. Kagome sighed, "It was magic, okay?" She patted Ryoma's shoulder fondly. "Now go play tennis. I can walk to the nurse's by myself just fine."

Ryoma didn't make a move. "You never got hit by the ball."

Kagome froze again. Very slowly, she turned towards him and asked, "How did you know?"

Ryoma shrugged, and then began walking away from her and back towards the tennis courts. "The last person that got hit by the _Jack Knife _broke a few ribs."

Kagome twitched. _Ribs? _She watched Ryoma's retreating back for a few moments before turning around and making her own way towards her own destination. _Demonic energy inside a ball,_ she thought. _But nothing from the person who hit the ball. _Kagome groaned. _That doesn't make any sense!_

Upon reaching her destination, Kagome knocked at the office door and frowned when no one answered. Then again, should wouldn't start for another half an hour or so. Kagome groaned as she opened the doors and made her way into the dark office. The lights flickered on as the sensors caught her movement. "Well Kagome," she muttered to herself. "Time to bandage yourself up. Again." She swallowed hard as she began pulling open cabinets and drawers, trying to find the correct items. _Everything is reminding me of the federal era,_ she thought with a frown. And she was trying so hard to forget…

Kagome hummed softly and placed the bandages onto the table. "Let's see, do I need—"

"Kagome-chan!" someone called out just as the doors to the nurse's office flew open. "Kagome-chan! Oh my god!" The girl was running towards Kagome, long hair trailing behind her before Kagome had time to react. "Kagome-chan!" the girl sobbed out as she pulled Kagome away from the table and into a tight embrace. "I heard from Ryoma that you were back—and then some idiot injured you! Oh! I was so worried!"

_What?_ Kagome wondered as the unnamed girl continued mumbling about the recent cause of Kagome's injury. "Uh—I think you mistaken me for someone else." She said as she slowly pushed the girl away from her as if not wanting to alarm her.

Kagome took in the girl's worried expression and did a double-take. "S-Sango?"

**I'm on vacation, by the way, which is why most, if not all my stories are on hiatus. And another thing, if you are interested in my story, watch this story. Not me. I tend to jump fandoms a lot and you'll get spammed by a lot of different stories.**


	3. Answers and Questions

**If this chapter is confusing… good, it's supposed to be. I think. Nah, I just don't have the talent to explain everything beautifully. I noticed, my grammar really, really sucks. Damn.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Prince of Tennis, Inuyasha or any of its characters.**

New Beginnings  
>[3] Answers and Questions<p>

_"Kagome-chan?"_

_Kagome looked up from her textbook and smiled. "Sango. What's up?"_

_Sango stared blankly at her for a few seconds before shaking her head lightly with a soft chuckle. "Are you busy?"_

_If it was Inuyasha, the answer would obviously be yes but she would always have time for Sango. Kagome shook her head and closed her book, putting it back into her backpack. She petted the log next to her._

_Sango sat down and the two of them sat in comfortable silence._

_There was definitely something on the older woman's mind but Kagome knew that Sango should be left alone until she was ready to speak._

_"Do you ever think about it?" Sango asked so quietly Kagome almost didn't hear her._

_"Huh?"_

_"The end," she clarified, tilting her head up towards the night sky._

_Kagome felt her stomach drop at the thought. Of course she had thought about it, she didn't think anyone didn't think about it. Kagome reached into her shirt and pulled out the Jewel. All the shards have been found and they were currently just waiting for the final confrontation._

_"Yes." Kagome murmured softly._

_"I thought a lot about it and I decided that if I have to be the one to fight Kohaku at the end… I—I'm going to kill him."_

_Kagome almost fell the log in shock. "What? Sango!"_

_"I—I can't—" Sango said, her voice breaking. "I can't let Kohaku live with that memory."_

_"Oh Sango," Kagome said as she pulled the older woman into a tight embrace. "I'm so sorry."_

_The two of them stayed like that for a while, long enough for the boys to finish their bath and return back towards camp. One look at the girls however had them back up slowly and quietly, not wanting to interrupt such a critical moment._

_"Kagome?"_

_"Hmm?"_

_"What do you plan on doing when this is all over?"_

_Kagome swallowed hard. "Probably… I'll probably go back home."_

_Sango froze for a moment before pulling away from Kagome's embrace. "What do you mean?"_

_Kagome smiled sadly at her. "Spending time here, spending time with you guys, I realized that the Shikon is only a temptation. There's no such thing as a pure wish because all wishes have some sort of selfishness in them."_

_"Then…"_

_"When the jewel is whole again… I… I'm going to demand for its disappearance."_

_"But then… then…"_

_Kagome nodded. "The link between my time and yours will no longer exist." She breathed in deeply to prevent herself from crying. "I was born in the future, Sango; I belong in the future. I have a feeling that once the Shikon disappears it will force me back to my own time."_

Kagome knew that the girl couldn't be Sango. She couldn't be Sango because the Sango she knew was human and alive almost five hundred years ago. She was beautiful and young and _alive _all those years ago. But there was something—everything—something about the girl that made Kagome see the demon slayer. Her hair was tied up in a high ponytail, Sango's trademark when slaying demons. Her facial structure, her figure, her _everything_ about the girl reminded Kagome of Sango.

If she and Kikyo could have been mistaken as siblings then this girl and Sango could have been mistaken as identical twins.

And she knew the girl couldn't be Sango.

Because the Sango she knew had eyes of a woman whose soul and mind was much too old for her body. Whose eyes tell people that she has been through more than anyone can imagine.

"Yes!" the girl tearfully responded much to Kagome's further shock and confusion. "I was so worried! It's been so long and all of sudden you show up wound—" she froze, her eyes flying open and she stared at Kagome as if seeing her in a new light. "I—I—" She pulled away, stumbling backwards. "Oh dear gods."

"S-San—" Kagome cleared her throat as the girl fell, slumping down onto the ground as if all her strength left her body. She rushed over and ignored the sharp pain in her ankle as she did. "Are you okay?"

The girl remained silent for so long Kagome feared she may have fainted if the girl. But the girl was still staring blankly ahead, her eyes wide with shock. Finally, very slowly and softly the girl mumbled, "Yes." She trembled. "Yes, I am Sango." Looking up into Kagome's deep blue eyes she repeated, "I am Sango."

And all of sudden all Kagome could hear was the pounding of her own heart. "Wh-what are you talking about?"

The girl—Sango—shook her head and looked around, almost as if she was afraid of her surroundings. "Ooh," she said with a grimace, bringing nimble fingers up to her temple. "Everything is coming back now." She froze again, her eyes widening as she turned back towards Kagome and gasped. "Kagome! What did you do?"

Kagome gaped and then flushed. "Me? What do you mean? I didn't do anything. I belong here. You are the one out of place."

Sango shook her head. "I don't understand."

"I'm the one from the future, remember?"

Sango's eyebrows shot up in surprise. "No," she said softly. "I—I have a life here too."

Silence filled the air and Kagome took the moment to sit down carefully, making sure not to upset her ankle. "So… you're telling me that you're alive here too?" Kagome frowned. "Like a… reincarnation?"

Sango looked down at her hands which were shaking with reasons unknown to her. "I'm not really sure," she replied softly. "I just… I have a life here. I was born and raised here."

"And the past?"

"I didn't remember _that life_ until I saw you."

Silence.

"I'm confused," Kagome finally admitted.

"Start from the beginning?"

Kagome nodded.

"Like I said," Sango began. "I have a life here and—oh! I-I _remember_ you!"

"What?"

"Ryoma! I just saw him and he told me that you were here." Sango shook her head, as if trying to clear it. "Oh, this is so confusing."

"Tell me about it," Kagome mumbled having no clue what Sango was talking about.

"Forget demon-slaying Sango! I know you in this… this school-girl Sango life!"

Kagome swallowed again. "I'm afraid I don't know you."

Sango frowned. "We use to play together with—oh my god!"

_"What?"_ Kagome panicked. "What?"

"Miroku, Inuyasha and Sesshomaru!" A pause, Sango's eyes shooting up in surprise. "Sesshomaru?" She closed her eyes for a moment before snapping them open. "They are all here!"

Kagome gaped. "In the school?"

Sango shook her head. "No, just Miroku and when you left we lost contact with Inuyasha."

"When I left?"

"Yes! You used to visit Ryoma, remember?"

Kagome nodded, agreeing. "But I never met you guys."

Sango fell silent. "So… I have memories of something that never actually happened?"

"Maybe it's me," Kagome said. "Maybe I don't have the memories of something that actually happened."

Silence.

"This doesn't make sense," Sango finally said.

"My life never made any sense," Kagome replied, fighting the urge to sigh and roll her eyes. She glared at the ground in front of her. "I don't know why I thought it would start to now… stupid me. I should have never left the shrine."

"Maybe… we should find the monk."

_"Now,_ you're starting to sound like Sango," Kagome said with a small grin.

Sango glared. "What are you talking about? I am Sango."

Kagome gave an outfit a look over and raised her eyebrows. "A ōendan uniform. Really?"

Sango flushed. "It's just that—tryouts were today—and—" She groaned. "It's not like I'm on the squad yet and… and thanks to you, I'm not trying out for it anymore."

"Good," Kagome said. "It's not you. I imagine more butt-kicking… like karate?"

"I think you're like a trigger or something," Sango said as the two girls made their way down the hall. "Because I definitely _did not_ remember anything until I saw you."

"We have ten minutes until class starts. Will we find him in time?"

Sango rolled her eyes. "He's usually with the girls."

Kagome laughed. "Some things never change."

Sango frowned. "Right… but…"

"Did you two… get together when I left?" Kagome asked softly.

"We had _children,"_ Sango said with a shiver.

Kagome blinked. "Children?"

"Twins."

"Oh my god," Kagome squealed. "Twins? Sango!"

"He has a girlfriend," Sango said flatly, blushing over Kagome's comment.

"Oh," Kagome answered, deflated. "I'm sorry."

Sango shook her head but didn't say anything. She pulled Kagome through the student-filled halls, greeting a few people on the way.

"He flirts with you though, right?"

Sango's bright blush was the only answer Kagome needed.

"Don't tell me this is like… pre-Naraku destruction all over again."

"Kagome-chan!"

_"It's about time you two got together!" Kagome had said excitedly at the newly announced couple. "There's no way I can live through the groping and slapping again."_

"…And now I am," Kagome mumbled.

"I'm sorry," Sango said, looking back. "Did you say something?"

"Nope," Kagome answered brightly. Then: "I think I'm the only one out of place," she said. "Aunt Rinko did say that I had friends here and I just couldn't remember who. But now…"

"It was us," Sango answered as she pushed open heavy double doors. "Well," she said directing towards the group of girls that were hanging out near the corner of the cafeteria. "Here we— He's not there."

Kagome looked around. "Seriously?"

"Hey!" Sango called out, approaching the group of girls. "Have you guys seen the mo—Miroku?"

The group fell silent and looked around at each other for a few seconds. Finally one girl stepped forward and folded her arms underneath her rather large breasts. "Why are you looking for him?"

"Girlfriend?" Kagome asked in a whisper.

"Nah," Sango answered back. "Jealous bitch. His girlfriend is the one with the short hair. To the right." She cleared her throat and raised her voice louder as she answered, "One of our old friends came back and I just wanted to let him know."

The girl rolled her eyes. "I didn't think you had any friends, Sango-chan."

Sango blinked. "Since I remember," she muttered to Kagome, "Can I sock her one?"

"Uh, no." Kagome answered. "Although I am liking the modern you."

"Besides," the girl continued. "It's not like Miroku likes you—"

"Excuse me," a new, deeper voice said, cutting in the conversation.

Everyone turned towards the owner of said voice and Kagome blinked in surprise. "Eh? Oh! Kunimitsu! I mean, Tezuka-san!" she swallowed hard. "Uh… captain!" Then: "Shit, this isn't coming out right."

"You know him?" Sango asked with a raised eyebrow.

"It isn't like that!" Kagome flushed. "He's Ryoma's cap—" she brightened up suddenly as her eyes landed on her cousin who was standing a few feet behind Tezuka. "Ryoma! Come save me!" she waved him over dramatically.

Sango gave the taller male a look over. "He's kind of…" she trailed off.

"No." Kagome said flatly and blushed when she realized that Sango had said that louder than she would have liked.

"Sesshomaru?"

"Oh! You too?" Kagome asked, almost excitedly. "I thought so too!"

"Mada mada dane," Ryoma muttered as he walked through the crowd of girls while rolling his eyes.

"Hey!" Kagome said suddenly as she chased after the slightly younger boy, almost pushing Tezuka out of the way. "Ryoma! Wait!"

Ryoma paused causing Kagome to crash into him sending them both to the ground. The girls gasped. Sango's mouth fell open and Tezuka twitched.

"Shit," Kagome muttered after a few seconds of tense silence, "that really hurts."

"Get off of me," Ryoma said, his voice muffled by her chest. "Please."

"Eep!" Kagome squeaked and jumped off, only to wince as she landed harshly on her ankle once again causing the return of the sharp pain despite the good tying job that Sango had done with the bandages. She blushed, wrapping an arm across her chest. "Sorry! I'm clumsy."

Ryoma almost rolled his eyes but refrained. He pulled himself up and dusted the dirt off. He looked down at Kagome waiting for her to speak.

"You said that I had friends, right?" Kagome asked.

Ryoma frowned but nodded.

"I don't remember."

Ryoma gave her a flat look and looked at Sango.

Kagome waved it off. "We just got reunited." She inhaled deeply. "Inuyasha… do you know what happened to him?"

"Inu—" Ryoma frowned again. "You lost contact with them."

"Right…" Kagome said. "But… do you know where I can contact him now?"

Ryoma shrugged. "No."

"Ryoma! Please! This is important!"

"Like the pink light?"

"Pink light?" Sango asked. She gasped. "Kagome!"

"Not my fault," Kagome said. "I almost got hit by the… the… Jack… Jack's hit."

"_Jack Knife_," Ryoma correctly.

"Right, _Jack Knife."_

"A knife?" Sango said slowly, her eyes wide.

"Apparently it's a name for a tennis move," Kagome answered. "Similar to _Wind Scar_ and _Fox Fire."_

Sango nodded, "Right… but a _tennis move?"_

"Hey," Kagome said. "I'm not a tennis player." She whipped around towards Ryoma again. "Inuyasha! Contact info. Now!"

Ryoma glared. "I said I don't know. He's your friend."

"Ryoma," Kagome warned. "I know you're not as stupid as you want others to think you are. You have to know something."

Ryoma blinked. "I know how to get his brother," he said slowly.

_"Sesshomaru?"_ Kagome asked with a gasp of horror.

Ryoma's lips quirked up. "You two were close."

Kagome frowned then turned towards Sango. "How close?"

Sango almost giggled but she shrugged. "I actually don't know. Inuyasha, Miroku, you and me were friends but… Sesshomaru just talked to you… and Inuyasha. He didn't like the rest of us very much."

"That—That's not even parallel to the past," Kagome stuttered. She turned her attention back towards Ryoma. "Why do you have his contact info anyway?"

"He funded me for a European tournament a few months ago," Ryoma said, shrugging.

"I—you—what?"

Ryoma rolled his eyes and gave her an are-you-stupid? stare (usually reserved for his teammates). "He's a businessman." _Idiot._


	4. One Step Forward

**This story is not my top priority. It is not even a serious story. It's written for fun. I will update when I want. Moving on…**

**I have revised the previous chapter (one of the reason why it took me so long to update) and made a few small changes. You might want to read them but you don't have to in order to understand future chapters.**

**I recently got a review (and a couple Private Messages) asking me what pairing I want in this FanFiction. To tell you the truth, I'm not really sure. I mean, I do have an idea of the pairings I might want to do, but depending on where this story takes itself, it might have a serious crack pairing or no pairings at all.**

**In conclusion, I'm open to suggestions. So feel free to contact me and suggest me a pairing that you like. Bonus points if you tell me why you like them. Just remember that this isn't a vote. In the end, I'll do whatever pairing I want to do, if I even want one at all but I will take all your suggestions into consideration.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Prince of Tennis, Inuyasha or any of its characters.**

New Beginnings  
>(4) One Step Forward<p>

"A CEO?" Kagome asked, staring at the magazine in shock. She sat down onto her bed blinking a few times, making sure that she was not hallucinating. She had tracked down Ryoma directly after school and made him give her more information about Sesshomaru before finally releasing him to his after-school tennis practice… late. Which really wouldn't have made much of a difference since he probably would have been late anyway. "Why am I not surprised?" she asked Sango, who was sitting across from her, opening a bottle of water. "I mean, I always thought that if Sesshomaru ever lived up to my time… he would be some big-time rich guy… or something. But really?" She looked at Sango. "You never even _heard _of this?"

Sango shrugged. "Hey, I'm no businesswoman."

"What do you think will happen if I call his office?"

"Um… well, he probably won't recognize you until he sees you." She shrugged. "But who knows? Maybe hearing your voice is enough to bring back memories."

"Yea…" Kagome muttered as she pulled out her cell phone. "It's weird listening to you talk in such a modern fashion," she said, punching in the number to Sesshomaru's company.

"_Hello, welcome to Wakagami Corporation, how may we assist you?" _

"Uh… hi," Kagome replied awkwardly. "I need to talk to Sesshomaru… uh," she skimmed the article over again. "Sesshomaru Wakagami."

"_Your name please, ma'am?"_

"I'm Kagome. Kagome Higurashi," she answered as Sango inched closer to the girl, her head tilted slightly, trying to catch the conversation.

"I'm sorry ma'am but you don't have an appointment with Wakagami-sama. Perhaps you would like to make one now?"

Kagome pulled the phone away from her ear, stared at it and gaped. "You need an _appointment_ to talk to Sesshomaru? _On the phone?_" she asked Sango, staring at her in disbelief.

"_Ma'am?"_

"Uh, sorry," Kagome said, ignoring Sango's giggles. "Um… can you just tell him that Kagome called? It's important. He'll understand." _I hope,_ she added silently.

"I apologize. Wakagami-sama made it clear that he does not take calls unless an appointment has been set up."

"Look, this is an _emergency_," Kagome insisted, raising her voice a little. "Tell Sesshomaru to _get on the phone_ before I purify him a new one!"

Sango began laughing.

"I apologize but that is not possible. Unless you are willing to set up an appointment, I'm afraid I cannot help you."

Kagome's mouth fell open in shock and just as she was about to respond Kagome found herself listening to the dial tone. She stared at the phone for a moment and then turned back to Sango. "Are they allowed to hang up on people like that? Isn't that against the rules or something?"

Sango straightened out and shrugged, a smile still visible on her face. "Why don't you try asking your cousin when he comes back?"

"Hm?"

"I mean, if Sesshomaru did fund him for something, your cousin's bound to have some sort of private contact information with him." She glanced at the phone. "And who knows? Maybe he doesn't need an appointment," she said as she snickered.

Kagome frowned and muttered under her breath. It made sense however and silently blamed Sango for not mentioning it earlier. "So," she began slowly. "Do you think he'll appreciate it if I go bug him during his practice?"

The other girl gave Kagome a flat look. "Are you trying to get on his bad side? Not to mention that captain of his. I heard he's pretty strict."

"Where did you hear that?" Kagome asked. "You didn't even know who he was until I greeted him."

Sango sighed. "Just because I didn't recognize him doesn't mean I haven't heard of him." Kagome stayed silent waiting for her friend to elaborate. She wasn't disappointed. "Tezuka… Tezuka is everything. Honors, leadership awards, academic awards, athletic awards, hot mofo awards, you name it. As a matter of fact, I believe he's the captain that broke Rikkaidai's three-year winning streak."

Kagome blinked. Then finally: "You lost me there at the end."

Sango rolled her eyes. "In tennis. He _is_ and the tennis captain, you know. He was also captain back in middle school."

"Oh." She didn't even want to know why her friend knew so much.

Silence.

"So, do you think Ryoma will mind if I go bug him during his practice?"

* * *

><p>"Come on!" Kagome said, resisting the childish urge to stomp her foot. "This is really important to me! Sesshomaru's been your sponsor so you should still have contact information with him. Right?"<p>

"Haven't I already given it to you?" Ryoma asked scowling.

Kagome faltered. "Well… yes, but apparently I needed an appointment to speak to him."

"On the phone," Sango added helpfully.

Echizen scowled even harder. "Can this wait until after practice?" he asked in a low voice, as if not wanting to be heard by others.

Kagome blinked. "You mean you'll actually do it?"

"Che," Ryoma answered with another scowl as he walked away, racket swung carelessly over his shoulder.

"Does that mean yes?" Sango asked turning towards Kagome.

Kagome shrugged. "I'm not too good at reading him anymore," Kagome responded. "He used to be a lot cuter when we were younger."

"Well," Sango said slowly after a moment. "I think he's cute."

Kagome gave her a flat stare.

"Like I thought Kohaku was cute."

Kagome nodded, "Oh… wait, what?"

Sango shrugged. "You know… chasing down a half-demon to revenge my fallen family and trying to attempting to save my brain-washed younger brother…"

"Well yes," Kagome said, glaring, "but you said was… past tense."

Sango twirled her hair between two nimble fingers. "Yea… I kind of hate him now."

"Excuse me?"

"In a brother-sister, love-hate type of way!" Sango replied quickly.

"Huh," Kagome said, as she stared at the ground thoughtfully. "I always took you for the brother complex type," she said finally and she began walking away, trying to find a good spot to sit as she waited to the end of tennis practice.

Sango was left gaping for a few moments before a sudden: "What?" exploded from her lips drawing the attention of nearby tennis club members. She ignored the stern glare from Tezuka (after all, she had faced demons with scarier glares than that) and stomped her way towards Kagome, her eyes flashing angrily. "I can't believe you just said that!"

Kagome gave her a bored look. "Really? Because I'm pretty sure you told me before that Kohaku was your most precious person."

"T-that was—"

"Exactly."

The two girls feel into silence, one sputtering softly and the other gazing at a light tennis match in front of her intensely. "Hey," she muttered quietly. "Sango?"

Sango opened her mouth, ready to tell her long-lost best friend that she was still slightly angry with her but stopped when she saw the intense light in Kagome's eyes. Her stomach flipped a little and Sango found herself thinking back to the times where there was someone's hands on her butt, the wind on her face, and pure adrenalin rushing throughout her system. "Yea?" she asked quietly, half her mind still remembering.

"What does that tennis match look like to you?"

Sango blinked, making sure she heard correctly before slowly turning around, facing the tennis courts. She watched, trying to match the intensity she saw in Kagome's eyes only a few moments ago. _Wow,_ Sango thinks. _These people are really good. _Despite her… previous life (?) of demon-slaying Sango was unable to follow the yellow tennis ball—only seeing blurs here and there. But besides of that… it looks… it looks…

"It looks like a tennis match," Sango said finally. "I think."

Kagome gave her a flat look.

"And I only say this because I do not play nor am a fan of tennis so I do not know what a real tennis match looks like."

Rolling her eyes, Kagome raised a single finger and pointed towards a player on the court. "That's Momoshiro… I think. Anyway, this morning, something happened and he hit a ball towards me, calling his move Jack's Hit, or some—"

"_Jack's Knife_," Sango corrected.

Kagome gave her a half-hearted glare and continued on,"..._Jack's Knife. _And I reacted without thinking."

"A barrier."

"Yea, a barrier," Kagome agreed. "The tennis ball just struck my barrier and flew off in another direction."

"Ooh! Thank goodness you're alright!"

Kagome paused. "Well… yes, but that's besides the point! Don't you understand Sango? I create holy barriers with my holy energy. That tennis ball shouldn't have reacted to my barrier at all! The most it should have done was slow down a little before hitting me." She took a breath and looked around making sure that no one was within hearing distance. "I mean, if I concentrate enough, I can make barriers that defy ordinary objects but since I reacted out of reflex, my barrier was holy."

Sango blinked, eyes wide with understanding. "That means…"

"…the tennis ball has demonic energy in it," Kagome finished.

"But demons don't exist now. I mean, I didn't—not until you showed up!"

"I know," Kagome said and nodded slowly as if tired. "If you think that blew your mind…"

"Hm?"

"The thing is… the ball had demonic energy but Momoshiro did not."

Sango stared. "That doesn't even make any sense."

"Which is why we need to find Miroku… or Sesshomaru… oh hell! Even Inuyasha will help!"

"What about Kohaku?" Sango asked just as Tezuka shouted for an end of practice gathering. The courts fell into silence as Tezuka began talking about later events: practices, championships, nationals, blah, blah, blah… all that stuff that neither girls cared about.

"You really want me to make him remembered what happened in the past?" Kagome whispered.

"It's not like we're orphans. Both my parents are alive and it'll be like a dream… you know?"

Kagome frowned. "Obviously, since you probably would have stabbed me if I suggested that to you in the past."

Sango rolled her eyes. "I lost everything in the past… but this is my second change."

"Some second chance," Kagome muttered. Then: "How about we try and get into contact with Sesshomaru first? Then we try Kohaku."

Sango nodded slowly in agreement. "True… I can't imagine Kohaku being more informative than Sesshomaru."

For the next few minutes the two of them sat comfortably side-to-side and whispered theories to each other. When Ryoma finally emerged from the locker room after changing, Kagome was the first to notice and she immediately jumped up and jogged her way towards him followed closely by Sango.

"Ochibi's popular with the ladies," Kikumaru snickered.

Kagome sweat dropped and wondered if the older redhead remembered that they were cousins. And Sango was like a sister to her… so technically that would also make her like Ryoma's cousin. Technically. She shook her head and forced her mind back towards more important subjects.

"So…" Kagome said slowly inching her way closer to her cousin and the rest of his teammates watched with amusement. "Ready to make that call for me?"

Ryoma glared. "I don't know what you're talking about."

Kagome gaped. "Ryoma!'

He refused to acknowledge her and looked away, eyes glaring steadily at whatever they could see.

"Look," Kagome said, "I know you don't like him… but this is a serious situation. It's like you not getting Ponta! Your father not getting his porn. Me not getting straight A's..." and softly, "Oh… wait."

Ryoma blinked. "What?"

Kagome rolled her eyes. "Me not talking to Sesshomaru could cause the world to spin backwards, three point seven percent faster than average and the sun to explode in a rhythm that follows something Beethoven might have wrote in his early years."

Ryoma gave her an open-mouth stare as everyone ignored Inui when he muttered, "The possibility of that happening is one in six sextillion—"

"It's just really bad, okay?" Kagome asked.

"Just let her talk to her boyfriend, nya," Kikumaru said, thumping Ryoma on the head softly.

Kagome flushed. "He's not my—never mind."

"Ooh," Kikumaru said, grinning gleefully. "Someone's in denial!"

Kagome frowned. "That's disgusting."

"Yea," Sango agreed. "She had the hots for his brother."

"Half-brother," Kagome corrected automatically. "And I never—oh shut up, Sango." She turned her attention back towards her cousin. "Look! You don't even need to talk to him! And if you do… all you have to say is "Kagome wants to talk to you.'"

Ryoma hesitated for a moment before finally pulling out his cell phone from his pocket. He glared at his cousin for another moment and took in her serious expression. "Che," he muttered under his breath. Why do girls have to make everything more confusing than it should be.

Much to Ryoma's annoyance his teammates didn't leave him alone, surrounding him even as he punched in a number into his phone and held the button for a few moments. Kagome silently wondered why he had Sesshomaru on speed dial if he hated him. Maybe it was a sponsor thing.

Due to the unusual silence of his teammates Kagome was able to hear the soft rings as Ryoma waited for Sesshomaru… or his secretary to pick up. She inched even closer to him and then wiggled his cell phone out of his hand while ignoring his glare. Kagome pressed the loudspeaker button happily and handed it back to Ryoma.

"_Hello," _a familiar voice said through the phone,_ "welcome to Wakagami Corporation, how may we assist you?"_

"I want to speak with Wakagami," Ryoma said softly and then glanced at Kagome. "Please," he added.

Kagome rolled her eyes and mouthed the words as the girl on the other side of the phone said, _"Your name please, sir?"_

Ryoma scowled. He hated high school. "Echizen Ryoma," he bit out, colder then he intended.

"Oh! Echizen-sama! Please hold on a moment."

Kagome pouted softly or at least tried to, attempting her best to make prevent her nervousness from showing.

"Sesshomaru," Sesshomaru's cold, unmistaken voice rang out after a moment. "Speak."

**So… couple suggestions? **


	5. Blooming

**I have a Harry Potter and Inuyasha cross over I plan on writing… but I should really complete my current stories before I publish another one. Dear lords.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Prince of Tennis, Inuyasha or any of its characters.**

New Beginnings  
>(5) Blooming<p>

"Sesshomaru," he had said. "Speak."

Sesshomaru's name, coming from the demon's own mouth did something to her insides, churning and twisting it. She took in deep steady breaths, trying to clear her swarming vision. The name repeated echoed in her mind until all Kagome could hear was _Sesshomaru, Sesshomaru, Sesshomaru._

"Kagome-chan," Sango said softly, laying a comforting hand on Kagome's back.

"I'm okay," she mumbled.

Ryoma gave her a questioning glance but did not hesitate when answering. "My cousin wants to talk to you," he said before promptly shoving the phone into her shaking hands.

Kagome swallowed her, taking in more deep breaths before bringing the phone closer to her face. Her throat closed up as she remembered green acid, red eyes, and die, die, die. _But wasn't he our ally at the end? _a small part of Kagome's mind reminded herself.

"_You are wasting my time," _Sesshomaru said, interrupting her thoughts. _"I do not have the patience to—"_

Kagome panicked. "Sesshomaru!" she squeaked out and then immediately wished that she had more time to mentally prepare herself because Higurashi Kagome does not squeak in the presence of Sesshomaru. Ever. It was one of the reasons why she was so famous in the federal era. She was the human that could shout, scold and call the Western Lord names and still manage to live. She was the walking miracle.

The other end of the line remained silent for a moment. _"Who is this?"_

"It's… it's… um… Kagome, Ryoma's cousin," she responded hesitantly, noticing for the first time that her cousin's friends were surrounding her, pushing into her personal space and acting as if her talking to Sesshomaru was their business. She glowered for a moment before turning her attention back to her current conversation. "You… um, probably don't remember me but we used to be…"

_Be friends, _Sango mouthed helpfully.

"Allies," she automatically corrected and then got distracted by Kikumaru who was standing behind the old demon slayer making kissy faces at her. She stared and then realized what she had said. "I mean friends!—uh! Allies? No—I mean… we used to know each other!"

Sango snickered and rolled her eyes. She patted Kagome's back, encouraging her to continue.

"_Where are you right now?"_

"Um… the tennis courts at my school?" Then: "My new school," she corrected.

"_Where are you staying?"_

Kagome blinked, pulled the phone away from her, started at it and blinked again. "Uh, with my cousin… You know him: Ryoma. Apparently you sponsored—"

"_I am leaving for a business trip later this afternoon and do not have time to meet with you," _Sesshomaru interrupted. _"I will return in a week. Do not leave. Stay in the city."_ A small click was Kagome's only warning before she found herself listening to the dial tone.

She gaped. "Stay in the city," she repeated. "Is he shitting me?"

Sango blinked. "Is that Inuyasha's influence I'm hearing?"

"So romantic, nya," Kikumaru said. "He sounds so excited to see you again."

Kagome gave a violent shudder at his words. "Excited," she muttered. "No. Just… no."

"It means he misses you and wants to meet you," Momoshiro pointed out.

"Actually," Sango said slowly, looking up at the taller man with a serious expression. "When Sesshomaru's excited, something usually dies."

Momoshiro blinked.

"Not actually _die," _Kagome hurriedly corrected. "Just…"

"People meet their early demise," Sango continued. "If you see that man smile, run like the wind in the opposite direction."

"_Sango!"_ Kagome said through clenched teeth.

The other woman smiled cheerfully. "That was a joke."

Momoshiro laughed nervously. "Oh, you sounded almost serious."

"Not surprise if she was," Ryoma muttered.

"Anyway," Sango said, turning back towards Kagome. "In all seriousness, at least he remembers you."

Kagome shuddered again. "Which me?"

Sango shrugged. "I'm guessing school-girl you… since he didn't… you know."

Kagome leaned closer, taking no notice at a few Regulars followed her movement. "Die, die, die?" she offered, her voice soft.

"Yea, something along those lines." She brightened up. "But! He remembers the school-girl you, so you shouldn't have any worries since you guys were friends!"

"That's good and all," Kagome said. "But what happens when he—"

"My phone," Ryoma interrupted, jabbing a hand out in front of her.

Kagome smiled and handed her cousin's phone back to him. "Thank you."

"Cupid ochibi, nya," Kikumaru said, jumping between them. "Reuniting former lovers."

"Eiji," Oishi said softly. "You shouldn't tease—"

"I said we weren't lovers!" Kagome said, twitching at the accusation.

"Denial!" Kikumaru teased.

Kagome narrowed her eyes, half of her was happy that Ryoma's friends were comfortable enough to tease her and the other half was alarmed that they were teasing her about Sesshomaru being her _lover_ of all things. What happens if he finds out? She paled at the thought.

Sango, on the other hand laughed at the mental image. "Can you imagine?" she asked.

Kagome stared at her in horror; she was _joining _them?

The older girl pulled Kagome's hands into her own. "Human," she said in a mocking low voice, trying to imitate Sesshomaru. "While this Sesshomaru may have previously stated that you are unworthy of this one's attention, this Sesshomaru must admit that your attitude and beauty have exceeded this one's—"

"Sango!" Kagome warned.

"It's okay," Sango said, laughing. "They won't get it," she managed to whisper between laughs.

Kagome wrinkled her nose, and gave a quick look-around; glad to see that no one was looking at her strangely, or stranger than usual. They all thought that Sango was just teasing Kagome like Kikumaru had moments ago.

She wrinkled her nose. "What happens when he remembers? Like you did?"

That stopped Sango's laughter. "Well," she answered helpfully. "Then you better hope you really are unworthy of his attention."

"Don't worry," Ryoma said as he began to walk away from the group, heading home, his senpai-tachi hot on his heels. He turned his head slightly to look at Kagome and gave her a small smirk. "You two were _friends_."

Kagome's mouth dropped open.

Tezuka glanced backwards, taking in the girl's expression and shook his head. Another victim of Echizen's teasing, apparently. Although, truthfully Tezuka was surprised that Echizen would tease her. Weren't they _seven _the last time that they had seen each other? Was Echizen still so comfortable around her?

Apparently, he wasn't the only one thinking about Echizen's unusual behavior. He could see Inui scribbling madly in his usual notebook.

Kagome blinked. Once. Twice. "How close _were _we?" she wailed. "Why is Ryoma teasing me about it? What is he implying?"

Sango rolled her eyes. "Really, Kagome, let's think about this logically for a moment. You were _seven. _How close could you guys _really _have been?"

"_I don't know!"_

* * *

><p>"Well," Kagome said, falling onto the bed with a soft <em>thud. <em>"Miroku wasn't in school again today. Sesshomaru's a no-go for a week. What do you think we should do?"

Sango sat down carefully. "Well… we do have Kohaku. But…"

Kagome sighed, rolling onto her back and propping herself into a semi-sitting position, using her elbows as support. "Let's wait to see if Miroku shows up tomorrow." She looked at Sango. "Even if this _is _your second chance at life, I don't think you want your brother remembering that." The only reason Kagome had agreed to come to Sango's house was because Kohaku was away at a school trip. Otherwise, she would have never taken the chance that seeing her would bring back memories she rather the younger boy never remember again.

"Yes," said Sango.

"We're also missing a couple people," Kagome continued. "Inuyasha, Shippo, Kirara… do you have a cat, Sango?"

Sango swallowed hard and looked around. Although she remembered her past life now, and it still felt like a dream to her, it didn't stop her from feeling the intensity of her old bond with the fire cat demon. "Two, actually," she answered. "But neither them are Kirara."

Kagome sat up and gave her friend a soft smile. "Well, a two-tail cat that can transform is kind of a give-away." She sighed, getting back onto the subject. "You don't think _everyone _is here in this time, do you?"

Sango shook her head. "I only remember Inuyasha, Sesshomaru and Miroku." She tilted her head and turned towards Kagome, bringing her legs up onto the bed and folding them in front of her. "Of course that doesn't mean there's no one else."

They fell silent, giving them a moment to think. It was strange, Kagome thought, to know that the people she thought she would never see again, the people that she had life behind in the past were now living in her time. She smiled softly and wondered if this was a gift. If seeing her friends again was her reward for sacrificing her normal life in order to save the world.

Saving the world…

Then a thought hit her and Kagome felt all the blood drain from her face.

"S-Sango…" she began shakily.

Sango looked at her. "Yea?"

Clutching her hands into tight fists, Kagome asked Sango in a quiet voice, "What happens… what happens if Naraku is alive too?"

Sango felt her breath hitch at the question. What happens if history repeated itself again? What happens if Kohaku is forced to go through that again? "No…"

As if defeating that half-demon wasn't hard enough the first time. "Why do you think you guys have a life here?" she asked her friend quietly, regretting her wish to see her friends again. "Why do you think I don't have any recollection of us ever being friends in this life and you do? Why do you only remember your past life after seeing _me?"_

* * *

><p>"So," Momoshiro said as casually as he could, setting down the groceries that Tezuka had forced him to help Echizen-san take in. "Where's Higurashi-san?"<p>

"At her friend's house," Echizen-san answered with a soft smile. "She called just a few hours ago asking Nanjirou if he could help with something, so she should be coming home soon, I think."

"Why?" Ryoma asked suspiciously, glaring at a attempting to look casual Momoshiro, a grinning Fuji, and a stern-looking Tezuka.

Momoshiro shrugged. "Just curious. I'm just worried that she's still hurt after yesterday."

Ryoma narrowed his eyes for a brief moment.

"I'll prepare some tea," Rinko said warmly. "Please have a seat and make yourselves at home."

"Thank you, Echizen-san," Tezuka said, bowing low.

"Not at all," the mother said warmly, retreating back towards the kitchen. She came back out a few moments later, setting the tea on the coffee table in front of them. "Careful," she said softly. "It's hot." She gave them another bright smile and disappeared again.

Tezuka stared at the tray in front and was slightly surprised that there was a can of Ponta on there. _For Echizen, _he thought. _Of course. Does the boy drink nothing but Ponta?_

The four Seigaku Regulars sat around almost awkwardly in Echizen's living room; they were perhaps the oddest combination one could pick out from the group of Regulars and force together. It wasn't as if they all planned on coming to Echizen's household from the start. Momoshiro had asked Echizen if he could go over to his house for a moment and Echizen had agreed. Fuji, overhearing the conversation someone managed to invite himself and Tezuka (who had a science project with the third-year tennis genius) over. Before Ryoma knew what was happening, they were already making their way towards his house.

"Why are you here, Momo-senpai?" Echizen asked.

Momoshiro gave another too casual shrug, "Well, I just wanted to personally see if Higurashi-san was all right. You know, since I hit her with the ball and everything."

"You saw her at school today."

_Dear lord, he is ruthless, _Tezuka thought, feeling more amused than he should.

Momoshiro looked embarrassed. "I know," he muttered awkwardly. "But she left right after with her friend!"

Echizen gave him a faint look of disgust. He knew, just _knew _that his life was going to change with Kagome moving in. "You're disgusting," he repeated, earning a soft chuckle from Fuji.

"Let's not forget that Higurashi-san has a boyfriend," Fuji said.

"Sesshomaru's not her boyfriend," Ryoma said. Ryoma almost shuddered at the thought. He rather Momo-senpai date his cousin than have that… that… guy even go near her.

"Saa…" Fuji's eyes opened. "Echizen, how old is Wakagami-san?"

Ryoma looked at him. He shrugged. "I don't care."

Tezuka, taking in Fuji's opened eyes knew there was something more to the question than it seemed. Fuji might like making people uncomfortable but he was also overly protective of those he considered his friends. "What do you mean?" he asked, making both Momoshiro and Echizen look up.

"Well," Fuji said. "The last time Higurashi-san was here, she was seven, correct?"

"Yes," Ryoma answered, still not seeing where this was going.

"It's also the last time she had any contact with her friends. That girl we saw earlier was one and they're the same age."

Ryoma narrowed his eyes.

"But Wakagami-san is a powerful CEO. He must be in his thirties. Late twenties at the most."

Ryoma shook his head. "Sesshomaru's not that much older than us."

Fuji frowned. "That doesn't make any sense though."

"It's not impossible to become successful at a young age," Tezuka said.

Fuji smiled again, his eyes open and bright. "Hmm… that must be it." Then his eyes slid closed and he leaned back in his chair. "I wonder…"

"Hey brat!" Nanjirou shouted as he thundered down the stairs and jumped into the living room.

Momoshiro jumped, throwing tea into his own face. He sputtered and wiped it off with his shirt. "Sheesh," he muttered, glaring at the ex-tennis pro.

Fuji chuckled.

"What?" Ryoma glared at his father, and then stared at the black case that the older man was holding. He almost had to do a double-take to confirm that his father wasn't holding some porn magazine.

He blinked once.

And again.

_Wow._

"Kagome-chan's out back. She's going to shoot. Wanna come watch?"

Ryoma blinked. "Shoo—?"

"Oh! Hey! Your tennis buddies are here!" He grinned. "Come on, let's go watch my beautiful niece shoot the target I made."

"Shoot what?" Momoshiro asked, his voice almost in a panic as Nanjirou yanked the four of them onto their feet and pushed them out the door.

"The target, idiot," Nanjirou said with a roll of his eyes.

Momoshiro gaped, not believing that one of his biggest tennis idols was calling him an idiot. Then again… like father, like son?

"I think, Echizen-san," Fuji said softly. "Momoshiro meant to ask what she was shooting with."

Nanjirou shrugged as they made their way towards the backyard. "I dunno." He wiggled the black case he was holding in front of him. "Whatever's in here, I guess. I can't get it open. A gun, probably."

Tezuka turned to stare at the size of the case and blinked. He should have a chat with Higurashi-san about the legality of Japanese civilians owning guns. He actually had a couple law books on the matter and would be more than happy to give them to her.

"Kagome-chan!" Nanjirou cried out happily once they reached the area. He waved the black case above his head. "I brought fans!"

Kagome winced. "Careful, uncle." The took the case away from Nanjirou and turned towards Ryoma and his fellow Regulars. "Uh… are you all here to watch?"

Fuji smiled. "Of course. You don't mind, do you?"

Kagome smiled. "It's fine." She set the case onto the ground and unlocked it. "But I'm a bit rusty; it's been a while since I've actually held a bow in my hands."

"Bow and arrows?" Momoshiro asked, more than a little relieved.

"Of course." Kagome pulled out the smooth wooden bow from the case and ran her fingers up and down its familiar texture. She gave a soft smile and pulled the quiver of arrows out too before throwing it over her back again.

"What made you pick it up again?" Momoshiro asked.

Kagome's grip on her bow tightened as she looked at the target that Nanjirou had set up for her. "In case I need to save the world again," she answered with a grin. She pulled an arrow from the quiver and notched it.

Tezuka narrowed his eyes, there was something about the tone of her voice that made Tezuka pause. It reminded him too much of Fuji when the genius was hiding something. But instead of hiding a verbal threat behind a cheerful voice, Higurashi-san seemed to be hiding something that echoed of experiences beyond the norm.

"Isn't it a beauty?" Nanjirou asked, motioned towards the target.

"It is," Kagome agreed. "Thank you."

Nanjirou chuckled. "Not a problem; anything for my dear Kagome-chan."

"Che," Ryoma scoffed softly.

"What was that, brat?" Nanjirou asked. "You're lucky I didn't make the bull's eye your face."

Ryoma glared.

Kagome took a deep breath and the bystanders took that as their sign to stand back and give her space. She closed her eyes, taking deep, calming breaths. She brought her bow up, hearing only her own breathing and the thumping of her heart.

"_Inuyasha!" Kagome screamed, "Watch out!"_

_He might have heard Kagome's words, he might have not. It was impossible to tell as dozens and dozens of demons swarmed around her, blocking her view. She had seen neither Miroku nor Sango in a while and could only assume the worst. Kagome didn't think she could bare it if she lost a friend._

Four left, _Kagome thought, as she notched another arrow. _

_She closed her eyes, allowing herself to ignore everything around her for a moment before letting her senses expand. She could feel it. The aura. _His _aura._

"_Naraku," Kagome yelled out, eyes snapping open as she brought her armed bow out in front of her. She couldn't see him. But it didn't matter. She knew where he was. "You're finished!"_

Snapping her eyes open, Kagome concentrated on the target. Her hands neither hesitated nor shook as she pulled back the string of the bow, forgotten muscles flexing at the movement. Kagome held her breath, concentrating and waiting until she saw only the red bull's eye and released.

The arrow sliced through the air, the familiar sound welcoming to the young girl as it hit its intended mark.

"Woo!" Nanjirou cheered. "That's my girl."

But Kagome wasn't listening; she was lost in the past, lost in battles that have been long since fought but never to be forgotten. She pulled another arrow out of her quiver, notched, pulled and released. Momoshiro and Nanjirou's mouth dropped open, Fuji's eyes opened and widened in shock and Tezuka narrowed his own eyes. Much like the first, Kagome's second arrow sailed through the air, hitting the target with deadly precision, slicing the first arrow cleanly in half as it struck the exact same spot.

No longer was Higurashi Kagome, modern school girl standing there. She had been replaced by a warrior priestess and again and again Kagome pulled out another arrow. She notched, pulled and released. In rapid succession, the arrows sailed through the air, striking the same exact spot the first arrow had hit and slicing through the arrow before it.

Tezuka turned to look at Echizen, mentally comparing cousin to cousin, prodigy to prodigy and blinked in surprised that the younger man's attention was not focused on the target like everyone else was. Instead, Echizen's narrowed eyes were firmly fixed at his cousin's face. There were emotions in Echizen's eyes that Tezuka had never seen before.

He looked upwards, following Echizen's gaze and was almost taken back by what he saw.

Higurashi-san, who he had always taken as a cheerful, strong-willed girl had an expression that made her seem almost murderous. While her expression could have easily have been mistaken to be an expression of one deep in concentration, Tezuka felt himself being pulled into her eyes. He had to do a double-take at the emotions boiling behind her blue orbs. They lacked the liquid warmth he had associated her eyes with, instead they were a cool, hard steel, gleaming dangerously; even Fuji hadn't looked that frightening when someone had physically threatened his brother a year ago.

He almost shivered.

"Naraku," Higurashi-san said, her voice loud and clear. It sounded of steel.

She released her final arrow and Tezuka's eyes picked up the blur of the arrow's movement. Upon hitting the target, he could almost swear he saw a flash of light as the target gave out, bursting into pieces.

Tezuka stared.

And stared.

And everyone else stared too.

No matter how many arrows one shot at it, wood did not do that. Ever.

**Oh, look! Another cliff-hanger.**


	6. Falling Down Again

**I would like to take a moment to thank those that wished me a happy birthday yesterday. Unless you follow me on other websites, I'm not exactly sure how some of you got the information. For some reason the site isn't letting me PM you guys (it keeps giving me some sort of error message) but will thank you all personally once it does. I just don't want anyone to think I'm ignoring them.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Prince of Tennis, Inuyasha or any of its characters.**

New Beginnings  
>(6) Falling Down Again<p>

Kagome blinked, several times and slowly pulled herself out of her daze. She looked at the ruined target watching it smoke. "Tsk," she muttered and then looked down at her hand. "I'm rusty." She knew that she was only target practicing so she had made sure that none of her priestess energy rose up. Daydreaming was not an excuse at her lack of control.

"Higurashi-san?"

Kagome's head snapped up and she looked around her, remembering for the first time since shooting her first arrow that she had an audience. _Oh gods, _she thought. _I'm in deep shit, now._

"Um… that was… that… er, that's some… weak wood, eh?"

Silence.

Kagome winced.

"What was _that?"_ Momoshiro asked, his voice high with disbelief.

The young priestess swallowed hard. She looked from expression to expression and knew that there was only one thing to do in this situation: "I don't know what the hell just happened, I swear!"

* * *

><p>"And what happened afterwards?"<p>

Kagome groaned, "What do you think? I hightailed the hell out of there."

Sango blinked. And blinked again. "Wait. Let me get this straight: You decided to practice your archery after our conversation yesterday."

"Hn."

"And Ryoma and his friends decided to watch."

"Hn."

"You imagined the piece of wood as Naraku…"

"Hn."

"…and purified the poor thing."

Kagome wrinkled her nose.

"_In front of all of them?"_

Kagome cleared her throat. "In my defense, I would have never been able to defeat Naraku if I hadn't loaded that last arrow of mine with as much purification power as I could."

"_Are you insane?" _Sango screeched, catching the attention of people nearby. She glared and everyone went back doing whatever they were supposed to be doing.

"There was barely any light!" defended Kagome. "It just… just made the wood explode."

Sango gave her a flat look.

Kagome sighed. "I know. I'm stupid." Thinking of her next words, she gave a small groan and buried her face into her hands. "You know what's worst?"

"There's worst?"

"I _knew _I was target practicing which was why I didn't purify the wood straight out. The whole daydream… the whole fantasizing of killing Naraku again… that isn't an excuse for my lack of control." She sighed.

"Well, it wasn't as if you needed any practice when the well closed up." Sango gave her friend another look. She wondered how Kagome had been fairing the past few years between the closing of the well and meeting her again. To have everything taken away from you, Sango knew that feeling. "I probably wouldn't be able to lift Hirokatsu now, much less _use _it. Did Ryoma ask about "that light" again?"

Kagome shrugged. "It wasn't a lot so I doubt they saw anything… besides, I've been avoiding him."

"Is that wise?"

"You're channeling your inner Miroku," Kagome said with a glare. "Please stop."

Sango bit back a grin. "I'm being serious here!"

Kagome groaned. Again. "What else am I supposed to do?"

"Tell him the truth?" Sango suggested.

"Oh yes, of course," Kagome responded sweetly. "Why didn't I think of that? I mean when Naraku does appear, I'll just take Ryoma half-demon hunting with me. And you know what? While I fire my purification arrows, he can serve tennis balls at Naraku's face. Give him a concussion or something and we can live happily ever after."

Sango raised her eyebrows at her friend, wondering if Kagome's current sarcastic attitude was also Inuyasha's influence. It could also be the stress of the past few days getting to her since she did move in with her cousin to relax… Sango's appearance in her life did rather deny her the normality needed for relaxation.

"I'm sorry," Kagome said after a moment of silence. "I'm just really stressed out right now."

"I know," Sango said, petting Kagome on the back. "How 'bout we go and try to find Miroku again?"

"Please," Kagome said, climbing onto her feet. "I need a distraction."

The two of them walked towards the cafeteria again (which was apparently Miroku's usual hang-out spot). They peeked at the corner that Sango had led them towards before and Kagome felt her breath hitch in her throat seeing Miroku's familiar face. Like Sango, besides dressing more modernly, nothing was different about him.

She took a deep breath.

"Ready?"

Kagome hesitated. "Maybe I should wait here. If I am a trigger… won't it start having flashbacks and whatnot in front of so many people?"

"His girlfriend too…" Sango mumbled out. "And that jealous bitch."

Slanting her gaze down, Kagome glared at her friend. "Sango. On topic, please."

"Sorry."

Silence.

Sango pulled Kagome, striding towards Miroku without a single falter in her step. "When he begins to have those flashback, we'll just kidnap him." Truthfully, she didn't want to go alone. Sango, the demon slayer feared no one but Sango the schoolgirl knew how cutting a group of possessive girls could be. Not to mention, she didn't want to talk to Miroku alone with all her newfound memories. She blushed at the thought.

_I need to get in touch with my inner demon slayer, _Sango though disapprovingly. Her previous life would be so disappointed if she saw her right now.

Kagome tightened her hand around Sango's as they stopped in front of Miroku and his gaggle of girl friends.

"Miroku," Sango greeted.

Kagome took a breath.

"Ah, Sango, my dear! I heard you've been looking for me." He waggled his eyebrows.

Kagome took another breath.

Sango narrowed her eyes. "Yes. You remember Kagome, yes? She just moved here."

Miroku turned his violet eyes towards the younger girl, eyebrows shooting upwards as he took in Kagome's large blue eyes. "Ka… gome? Ah yes! We used to be friends as children, I remember! How have you been?" He smiled fondly, "As beautiful as I remember."

A soft strangling noise escaped Kagome's parted lips. "You… you don't—you don't remember me?"

The ex-monk frowned. "Of course I do. We used to hang out… along with Inuyasha and… well, his brother… sort of."

A girl stepped up. Kagome recognized her as the "jealous bitch" they had met before. "What do you guys want anyway?"

"Nemu," a quieter girl said softly. "Come on, they just got reunited."

"Probably wants to steal your boyfriend away," Nemu grumbled.

Kagome felt her jaw twitch in anger.

But Miroku laughed at the Nemu's words. The sound echoed in Kagome's head reminding her of moments around the campfire. "It's not like that," he said, comforting Nemu rather than his own girlfriend. "She was pretty close to Sesshomaru if I remember correctly."

Hearing the familiar teasing tone from the obviously older boy made something snap inside of Kagome. She blinked back tears and wondered if she was going to have a mini meltdown every time she sees someone from her past life. Miroku's laughter, his teasing tone, the way his eyes twinkled… Kagome took a step backwards.

Miroku was here.

But not.

Sango's grip tightened around Kagome's hands, attempting to comfort her… and herself.

"Are you guys together?" Nemu asked, eyeing the two girl's hands as she raised her eyebrows mockingly.

They ignored her.

Kagome took another deep breath and forced herself to remain calm. Perhaps his reaction was delayed. Perhaps it will take a while before he remembered, before the stranger in front of her became Miroku. Perhaps he needed a catalyst.

"I… I haven't seen you in a long time," Kagome said softly, squeezing Sango's hand so she knew that she wasn't going crazy and that there was someone else that remembered their previous life. That there was someone else in the world, someone else that mattered. "Do you… do you… can I get a hug?"

Miroku frowned at Kagome's words for a brief moment but quickly recovered. "Of course," he said, smiling warmly again.

Kagome heard Sango's soft sigh as she pulled her hands out of the older woman's grasp and stepped into Miroku's embrace. Kagome inhaled deeply, smelling cologne and _not Miroku. _She blinked back tears again as Miroku brought his arms up and around her. They squeezed once. Twice.

And that was it.

Kagome pulled away and looked up into violet eyes that didn't belong. "Thank you," she muttered. Sango's hand found hers again and Kagome squeezed it with all her might. It must have been painful but Sango made no move to pull her hand away. Instead she squeezed back, trying to give and take as much comfort as she possibly could.

"Is something wrong?" Miroku asked quietly. Despite not remembering, he knew when something was amiss.

Kagome shook her head and laugh, sounding breathless and bitter. "No. Nothing at all."

"He doesn't do that here," Sango mumbled softly.

"I should hope not," Kagome said, trying to sound positive. "He could get arrested if he did."

Kagome looked up again, hating the way that her heart squeezed painfully. She cleared her throat, hoping that she won't sound like she's about to cry. "I'll catch you later." She smiled. "It was nice seeing you, Miroku."

Sango sighed again, and pulled Kagome away from Miroku and his group. "It's okay," she said, not sounding the least bit convincing. "He's here. We'll figure out what went wrong."

"I'm scared," Kagome whispered back.

"Me too."

The two of them made their way towards the exit of the cafeteria. Kagome took another breath. They both resisted the urge to turn back and look at Miroku who was no longer Miroku but some stranger that had Miroku's look and none of anything else. The confusion was great but the disappointment was greater.

What went wrong? Why didn't he remember? _Why didn't he remember?_

And then:

"Lady Kagome!"

They both froze.

Sango was the first one to pull herself out of her shock. She turned around slowly, not able to believe but wishing so hard. She watched as Miroku abandoned his groupie and ran towards them, a familiar light shining deep in his eyes, masked by confusion.

Kagome turned around just as Miroku reached them.

"Kagome-sama," he breathed.

And it was all Kagome needed because she knew that he knew. She knew that he remembered and right now it was all that mattered. The tears escaped Kagome's eyes and she threw herself into Miroku's arms. "I'm so happy," she choked out. "You remember, you remember."

His cologne overflowed her sense of smell but that was alright because underneath it all Kagome could smell the scent of pine and _Miroku. _

"I'm so happy," she whispered again.

Then she felt the familiar sliding of his hands lower and lower on her back and Kagome almost wanted to let him because it meant that Miroku was back and it was all that really mattered. She gave herself two seconds to debate whether she should but luckily Sango made the decision for her.

"Not here, monk," she hissed out, grabbing onto Miroku's familiar wandering hands and bending it back. Miroku yelped and wretched out of Kagome's embrace and trying to pull his hand back from Sango. "You have a girlfriend," Sango hissed out angrily but looked relieved and teary.

"Yes, yes, apologies, apologies, apologies," Miroku stammered quickly. "My hand's cursed," he mumbled when Sango released it.

"BS," Sango muttered.

Miroku grinned at her and Sango fought with herself for two seconds before stepping into his open arms. She squeezed back tears. "Welcome back," she mumbled, her voice breaking.

"Yes," Miroku whispered. "Yes."

And then everything was serious again.

Miroku pulled away and looked around, noticing that they have the attention of just about everyone in the cafeteria. He smiled and announced, "The reunion between long-lost friends," before pushing Sango and Kagome out the cafeteria and into the halls. He then pulled them to a more secluded area and turned towards them. "What is going on?"

* * *

><p>"Miroku!" Sango screeched. "What did I say about your girlfriend?"<p>

"My lady," Miroku replied. "You were my wife!"

Kagome glared. As much as she loved the fact that her two friends were together again she didn't think the audience appreciated their presence. "Guys, shush!" She gave the forbidding tennis captain a quick, guilty glance. "Please!"

Miroku rubbed his bruising cheek. "So violent."

"Do that later," Kagome whispered. "I don't think buchou's happy with us right now."

Sango's eyebrows shot up. "Buchou?"

Kagome turned. "Yea, well he glares at me if I call him Kunimitsu. And Tezuka."

Sango blinked.

Kagome rubbed her hands together thoughtfully and explained, "I took him as the Sesshomaru type so I thought maybe he prefers having people address him by his title." Like how "My Lord" is to Sesshomaru as "Buchou" is to Tezuka.

"I… don't think that's how it works," Sango muttered hesitantly. She shook her head and turned back towards Miroku. "Do your thing."

He waggled his eyebrows. "Is that permission?"

"Miroku!"

Miroku sighed. Despite the fact that he wanted nothing more than to reunite—_actually _reunite—with Sango (and Kagome, of course) he knew that they had more important matters in hand. He leans in closer. "Which one is he?"

Kagome pointed a finger. "That one. Momoshiro."

Miroku follows her finger and squinted.

They waited.

And waited.

"I don't see anything."

Kagome shook her head. "It doesn't happen all the time," she clarified. "Just when he does this tennis move called _Jack Knife_."

They waited.

And waited.

"There might not being any demonic energy coming from him," Miroku said. "But _him_, on the other hand…" He pointed a finger at Tezuka who, surprisingly was not standing at the side watching his club members run laps but currently playing a light mock match with Fuji.

Kagome frowned but allowed her concentration to aim firmly at Tezuka. She watched as he hit the tennis ball back towards the net. _There! _Just as Tezuka struck the tennis ball, his entire left arm flared with demonic energy, charging the tennis ball with it too.

Although Sango could not sense the minuet demonic energy that flared up from time to time, she knew the meaning behind Kagome's almost pained-looking expression. "What do you think is going on?"

"Nothing good," Miroku muttered.

Sango tilted her head and wrinkled her nose. "Maybe we're thinking too much into this," she said. "Maybe they have demon in their ancestry."

Kagome shook her head. "No way."

Her friends blinked at her.

"If they had a demon ancestor, they would have a constant demonic feeling in them no matter how far back in the family tree their demon ancestor is," she explained. "And if, _if _their blood was so tainted with human blood that somehow hides their demonic side until needed, it doesn't explain why when Momoshiro struck me the other day, why the demonic energy inside his tennis ball was filled with untainted, complete full-demon demonic energy."

She pointed a finger towards Tezuka. "And him. Full demon."

Sango rubbed her temple. "This is too much for me to handle. Can we please wait until Sesshomaru gets back. We have what? Four days left? _Please?"_

Miroku laughed quietly. "How about we ask that Momo to hit that knife again? That why, we are prepared and can fully analyze the situation."

"Yea." Kagome scoffed. "And ask that captain of his for permission to enter court while practice is in session. You do that; I'm avoiding them."

Miroku gave her a curious glance which Kagome pretended she didn't notice. "I'll wait until Mr. Captain is finished with his current match."

Kagome felt her jaw drop. "Wait! You're really going to do it?" She panicked. "Please don't! Let's wait until Sesshomaru gets back. I mean, let's hang out! We _never _hang out. The most we hung out was around the campfire. Please?"

The young priestess must have really wanted to avoid her cousin and his friends after the incident. Sango couldn't blame her though. "Kagome, don't you want to figure this out?"

"Didn't you want to wait for Sesshomaru?" she shot back.

"Well," Sango said grinning. "Analyzing the situation is all on Miroku and you. I mean, I can't sense their demonic energy. Must be too small for me."

Kagome glowered.

For the next twenty minutes that the mock match between Tezuka and Fuji played out Kagome did her best trying to convince her friends to wait, damn it! But they stood firm in their decision, mostly from the glee of unsettling the young priestess but also to satisfy their curiosity on _what the hell is going on in the world._ When the match finally finished and the audience was clapping (the three of them had no clue who won or why the hell it took the two so long to come to a conclusion) Kagome accepted her defeat and inched backwards as Miroku stood up and made his way towards the captain.

"Good sir," Miroku called out and both Kagome and Sango had to hide their faces behind their hands in embarrassment.

"Why does he do that?" Kagome asked.

"At least he didn't say anything about ominous clouds."

They looked up again but Miroku was too far away and talking far too quietly for either girls to hear. Kagome watched as Tezuka narrowed his eyes—dear lord, does he have any _other _expressions?—before turning towards her. She resisted the urge to squeal.

Then Miroku smiled, petted the taller captain softly on the shoulder and turned towards Kagome. He winked.

Sango choked. "I'm sorry," she muttered.

"Why?" Kagome asked. "Why isn't he winking at you? Sango. Sango! Do something."

Sango rubbed Kagome's arms in comfort. "It's all up to you."

Kagome paled. "What's all up to me?"

"My Lady Kagome," Miroku called out, his voice loud enough to be heard by the two girls and everyone around them. Kagome felt her entire face twitch. "Please come this way, the good captain has agreed!"

_To what? _Kagome wanted to ask. Sango pulled her up and they held hands again, to give Kagome moral support. "We need to talk to him about calling me "Lady Kagome". You don't talk like you're back in the federal era! Why does he do that?"

"To piss you off, probably," Sango muttered.

Kagome took a deep breath. "What am I doing?" she asked, trying to ignore the fact that she was in the center of attention. Again.

Tezuka raised his eyebrows.

"You," Miroku answered, placing his hands on Kagome's shoulders making sure not to slide them any lower since Sango was giving him _the glare. _"You, my dear are going to stand on one side of the court and _analyze _as that Momo hits tennis balls at you."

Kagome blinked.

"_The last person that got hit by the _Jack Knife_ broke a few ribs."_

She paled.

Kagome turned to look at Miroku. "Why me?"

Miroku smiled. "You're going into physics for college," he replied seriously. "My skills are nowhere near as good as yours." He was of course, implying their abilities to sense auras and demonic energy.

Kagome paled further. "I'm pretty sure I'm failing that class," she grumbled.

Momoshiro ran up to them with a wide grin. "Higurashi-san!" His voice was too loud and too joyful, Miroku raised his eyebrows and nudged Sango who nudged him back. They both grinned at the implication "Haven't seen you since you blew up that target!"

Miroku blinked.

"Anyway," Momoshiro continued good-heartily. "I'm excited, I am."

Kagome stared up at him in horror.

"But you don't have to worry," he assured quickly, taking in Kagome's expression. "I'll go easy on you."

"_The last person that got hit by the _Jack Knife_ broke a few ribs."_

Kagome nodded and forced a smile. "Sure." And quietly, "I mean, who _doesn't _get excited about breaking people's ribs?"

**In case you don't remember, "The last person that got hit by the_ Jack Knife _broke a few ribs" was said by Ryoma back in Chapter 2. **

**And no, I'm not purposely delaying Sesshomaru's appearance just to torture you guys. Really, I'm not. More things—like Miroku—needs to happen before Sesshomaru can come in.**


	7. Breakdown

**Recently, I've been getting reviews and private messages asking me who Kagome's going to end up with. First of all, you guys obviously did not read my author's note in chapter four. Secondly, what makes you think I'll tell you? Seriously. If I'm going to tell you who Kagome's ending up with, I might as well tell you what's going on with the demonic energy and all of that and just give you the entire storyline. Then what's the point of reading at all? What's the fun in that?**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Prince of Tennis, Inuyasha or any of its characters.**

New Beginnings  
>[7] Breakdown<p>

"You'll need this," Ryoma said, handing his cousin his favorite red racket. It was for good luck. He didn't want to be the one taking care of his cousin because she couldn't leave the bed from broken ribs or something.

"Thanks," Kagome muttered, not feeling the least bit thankful. "You don't happen to have some full body armor with you, do you?"

Ryoma blinked. "Why did you agree to this in the first place?"

"Why did you tell me about the rib breaking?" she wailed.

Her cousin raised his eyebrows.

Kagome's own eyebrows twitch in annoyance. "No, Ryoma, I'm not going to tell you about the light or the exploding target."

"Che." He pulled his cap down.

"I can read you like a book," she pointed out earning a glare from her cousin.

"Buchou says to stay away from you."

Kagome wrinkled her nose. "Because I made a target explode?" Geez, who did that guy think he was anyway? Just because he was Ryoma's tennis captain didn't give him the right to tell him to stay away from precious family members. That's like Kagome going up to the expressionless captain and telling him to stay away from _his _cousin. She barely knew the guy!

"Fuji-senpai said that you sounded scary."

She nodded in agreement, "I can be scary sometimes."

Ryoma tilted his head. "Hmm..."

Kagome stared.

"Are you going to make Momoshiro-senpai explode?"

Kagome jumped up in surprise, her jaw dropping open. "Of course not!" she exclaimed. Then she remembered the demonic energy and her purification powers and—oh, dear. _I hope not,_ she prayed silently.

"Good luck," Ryoma finally said before walking away, leaving Kagome staring at his retreating back. Again. She wondered if he was wishing her luck to leave the tennis court with ribs intact or wishing her luck to make his senpai explode. Probably the latter.

She sighed and followed Ryoma, pulling the skirt of her school uniform down. It probably wasn't a good idea to take on Momoshiro's _Jack Knife _in her school uniform but she had _fought demons_ in her middle school uniform. She had practice and was pretty sure she still had the ability to defy physics and keep her skirt down.

Kagome made her way into the tennis court, noticing in horror that everybody in the tennis team was surrounding the court, wanting to watch what would happen. _Do they want to see someone break their ribs so badly? _she wondered.

Momoshiro was already on his side of the court, stretching muscles despite just having finished with his tennis practice. Briefly, Kagome wondered if she should also stretch but then decided that her life had been a stretch and really, she just wanted to get this over as soon as possible. _Sooner I'm finished, sooner I can go to the hospital. _

"Don't worry, Higurashi-san," Momoshiro comforted. "I won't start out with the _Jack Knife _and even when I do hit it, I'll make sure it's slow and easy so you can dodge it."

"Thanks," Kagome said loudly and cheerfully, making sure that those around her could hear. "But you needn't to worry. I took self-defense classes when I was young—"more like crash courses in escaping demons—"so I'm pretty good at dodging and handling situations like this."

She took a deep breath and channeled Ryoma's racket with her powers just in case, making sure not to channel too much and allow normal humans to see its abnormal holy glow. She glanced at Miroku and Sango who rewarded her with a thumbs-up.

_Can't see it, _Sango mouthed.

She smiled and turned her attention to Ryoma who was staring at his racket. Staring at it as if he had never seen a tennis racket before in his life. As if it was… glowing. His gaze then slid from his racket to Kagome. Ryoma raised his eyebrows and Kagome squeaked and turned away from him, ignoring him.

_There's no way he can see it, _Kagome told herself. _You need to either be a powerful demon or someone with some sort of holy power like Miroku or myself. _

"So, Higurashi-san, what should I start with?" Momoshiro asked.

"Just some…" Kagome made some flimsy swings with her arms and almost lost her grip on Ryoma's racket, "easy tennis moves."

Momoshiro grinned and served, an easy underhand serve. Kagome hit the ball, awkwardly and sent the ball spiraling out of bounds (Kagome only knew this because it hit the court next to them). Momoshiro was fine with it and jogged after the slow ball. He hit it again, sending it with pinpoint accuracy back towards Kagome. Kagome returned it, her aim better than it was the first time and managed to actually get it in (the double's boundary but at least it was in their court).

_There. _

_Nothing._

Kagome frowned, sensing no demonic energy. But then again, Momoshiro obviously wasn't playing her seriously at all. "Okay, Momoshiro-san, do you mind hitting that _Jack Knife _of yours?"

Her words sent her audience completely ablaze.

"That girl can't even play tennis and she wants Momo-senpai to hit _Jack Knife?_"

"Is she suicidal?"

Kagome paled. _Suicidal?_ She thought the _Jack Knife _broke ribs, not kill people. Kagome forced herself to remain calm.

"Sure," Momoshiro said, unfazed by the audience. Apparently he took her assurance of having self-defense classes very seriously. "Echizen," he then called out. "Do you mind helping me?"

Kagome watched as her cousin walked into the court with another tennis racket in hand. He eyed Kagome again which Kagome took great care in ignoring. She swallowed and wondered if Ryoma was here to save her if the _Jack Knife _got too out of hand or something.

"Just need someone to give me a ball to hit the _Jack Knife_ with," Momoshiro explained.

Kagome nodded.

Ryoma got into his position and threw a tennis ball into the air, hitting it into a nice semi-lob. Kagome watched as Momoshiro ran towards the ball, jumps and struck, sending the ball flying at the ground to the left of her with so much force Kagome swore she felt the earth move. _This was holding back?_ she asked herself.

Yes, it was fast and yes it was powerful but Kagome knew that she could handle both speed and power (especially with her purification power-covered racket). But that didn't change the fact that people aren't supposed to have the power to hit tennis balls that can break ribs. Or that the tennis ball that Momoshiro had just hit had the teeniest bit of demonic energy trailing after it.

"Again," Kagome all but commanded. "More power."

Momoshiro frowned. The more power he put into his upgraded _Jack Knife, _the less control he had over the ball. He nodded at Echizen, giving the younger boy a positive _go _signal. Higurashi-san seemed to know what she was doing and besides, she made a target explode.

Ryoma served and Momoshiro ran, jumped, and struck again, remembering to put more power behind this _Jack Knife. _Too caught up in the moment, he put a little too much power but was proud to see that the ball sailed towards its intended target: the right of Higurashi-san.

His proud smile then fell when Higurashi-san jumped into the path of the ball as if she knew what she was doing and as if she could actually _return _the _Jack Knife._ He stared in horror and wondered in the back of his mind if Echizen was fast enough to reach his cousin before the ball reached her.

Kagome pulled her arm back and swung one-handedly—_Oh my god, _the bystanders thought in horror. _One handed—_at the ball with a racket enveloped in her purification energy, not enough to actually purify the demonic object but enough to create a barrier and make said demonic object bounce back, giving off the illusion that she successfully hit the ball back.

To everyone else Higurashi-san's stance was a nightmare and there was definitely no way her skinny wrist would be able to withstand the power of the _Jack Knife. _

And it was that reason why everyone was more than a little surprised to see that the Higurashi-san had successfully returned the _Jack Knife_ as if it was child play. Even if Momoshiro hadn't put all his power behind his _Jack Knife _it was still enough to scare away some professionals.

Tezuka narrowed his eyes. What exactly _was _Higurashi? First the target and now this. Not to mention the look behind her eyes that showed up every now and then. That look, the one that showed him that there was so much more to her than what she was allowing people to see was the very reason why he had warned Echizen not to get too close to his cousin.

Kagome, completely unaware of the awe she had just caused was in awe herself. The energy had been, indeed demonic but beyond that, the moment her racket had hit the ball, she had felt the familiar tugging of her heart, as if she was sensing the Shikon Jewel. She paled at the thought.

The Shikon Jewel _had _disappeared… hadn't it?

"That… that…" Momoshiro was at lost for words.

Kagome looked up and blinked, pulled out of her thoughts.

Half of Momoshiro was in awe, a girl (no doubt a female version of Sasabe) had managed to return the _Jack Knife_. Where _do _the two of them hide the muscles, anyway? But the other half wondered if he should feel more than a little scared that she _had _manage to return the _Jack Knife. _Maybe he was getting weaker in his old age.

"Again," Kagome said, looking Momoshiro firmly in the eye.

_There it is again, _Tezuka thought. _That look. _

Everyone watched silently, holding their breath as Momoshiro performed the Jack Knife again, this time with even more power than before. More surprising, it flew towards Kagome, possibly due to the lack of control in place of the power Momoshiro had forced into the ball.

Kagome's first instinct was to dodge, after all, she had more confidence in her dodging skills than her hand-eye coordination but knew that if she wanted to confirm that previous feeling she had, she needed to come in contact with the ball one way or another. She brought the racket up to guard herself; her stance was, once again, a complete nightmare.

Inui frowned because despite the power that Higurashi-san might possess, her stance was wrong and her balance was off. Therefore, no matter how powerful she could be, her balance should have gotten thrown off by the ball. But the ball hit the racket and bounced off once again, as if it was just an ordinary hit.

Kagome shivered. _That feeling again._

* * *

><p>Ryoma watched as his cousin thanked Momo-senpai and wandered off the court, lost in thought. If Kagome was any other person he would think that Kagome was just in a daze about Momo-senpai's power but Ryoma had a suspicion that whatever Kagome was thinking about, it wasn't the <em>Jack Knife's <em>speed and power.

"Inui-senpai," he said quietly. "What are the chances of an arrow making a wooden target explode?"

The data collector looked up from his notebook. "It is possible," he answered. "How big was the wood?"

Ryoma held out his arms. The wooden target that his father had made yesterday was at least two widths of Ryoma.

Inui-senpai's eyebrows shot up. "And how big was the arrow?"

Ryoma gave him a flat glare.

"If the target really was that big, no matter how much force you put behind an arrow, it wouldn't make it _explode. _At most the arrow would just drive a hole through the wood." He scribbled some equations down into his notebook. "And even so, the force that requires an arrow to drive a hole through the wo—how thick was this target?"

Ryoma sighed. "I don't care about holes. I want to know about explosions."

"Are we talking about actual explosions? Or just… falling apart?

"Explosions," Ryoma emphasized.

Inui blinked. "How big was the arrow again?"

Ryoma scowled and then turned around to walk away. Obviously it was impossible. Obviously it was _normally _supposed to be impossible. He bet his ponta it had something to do with Kagome's pink light. Ryoma went over to his cousin and took his racket back, holding it up and testing the string tension. He blinked in surprise.

"Oh, Ryoma," Kagome breathed. "Ready to go home?"

"Hmmm…" Ryoma answered and waited for Kagome to finish her goodbyes with her two friends and wondered what's with all the hugging since they would see each other again He frowned, feeling the tension again. It didn't feel much different than it did before the match, as if it hadn't hit some heavy-duty _Jack Knife _just moments ago. It must have been that pink light that had surrounded his racket before.

He gave his cousin a curious glance but decided that it was best that he didn't ask. It wasn't as if she would answer him anyway. Probably just blame it on him seeing things.

_Really. _

"I'll talk to you guys tomorrow," Kagome said, giving her friends a quick hug. "Alright," she exclaimed happily as she turned back towards her cousin. "I'm ready, let's go."

"Hmm…"

"Need a ride home?" Momoshiro asked, motioning towards his bicycle.

Ryoma resisted the urge to suggest inappropriate places where Momo-senpai can shove his tennis racket. "No." He reached back, pulling Kagome's hand and made sure that they walked as far away from Momo-senpai as possible. It wasn't that he didn't like Momo-senpai, he did. But he wouldn't want any of his senpai-taichi to date his cousin. _That _would be awkward.

"Ryoma," Kagome gasped. "Geez, slow down!" Why did she have to be acquainted with all the possessive guys anyway?

From a possible stroke of luck, Ryoma did slow down but held on firmly to his cousin's hand because… because… He blinked and stopped walking all together. Bringing Kagome's hand up to eye level, Ryoma looked at it, studying it as if there was something abnormal about it.

Kagome blinked. "Ryoma?"

"Your hand tingles," he said.

Kagome immediately yanked her fingers away from his grasp and held it protectively over her chest. "W-what do you mean?"

"Hmm…"

There was something about Ryoma's tone that struck something in Kagome. He acted nonchalant but Kagome knew that there was no way that Ryoma was going to let it die down. His cool "hmm…" was code for: "I'm going to get to the bottom of this no matter what and you are not going to like my methods." She almost shivered.

Despite not having seen Ryoma in forever, she still did remain in contact with him through the phone. Ryoma had never been talkative but he talked enough with her through the phone for Kagome to understand what kind of person he was. They only had stopped talking as much when Kagome fell down the well on her fifteenth birthday.

"Ryoma, please," Kagome began. She had her secrets and she was sure he had his. "I know this is all very curious and I want to tell you—I really do! But before that, I need to talk to Sesshomaru and Inuyasha and whoever else that is in this world and figure out what the hell is going on before I drag outsiders into this."

He blinked at her, not at all impressed with her outburst.

"And no," Kagome growled out before he could interrupt, "I'm not in a gang. I know it sounds bad, it probably is but—" she cut herself off and stared at him in horror. "Did you just… said that my hand tingled?"

Ryoma blinked again.

Kagome didn't wait for his response as she reached out and held his hands in hers and stared intently at it. Ryoma wasn't going to admit it—at least not out loud—but he was starting to feel really, _really _uncomfortable underneath her stare. He could just chalk it off as Kagome being weird but Kagome wasn't his senpai-tachi and she isn't weird by any means, a little scatter-brained, perhaps but definitely not weird. He wasn't stupid and knew that she had secrets he probably wasn't going to believe and that amnesia things that grandfather told him was probably a complete lie.

Kagome was kind; she loves everyone and sees the good in each and every person. She's strong-willed and will stand up for herself but she's also the most selfless person he knew (at least, according to the stories Sota told him about some two-timing ex-boyfriend of hers). She—or at least her eyes—looked old, older than any sixteen-year-old's eyes should look and that included buchou who, now that he thought about it was pretty self-sacrificing too and maybe… maybe they could get along.

Ryoma resisted a violent shiver at the thought of his captain and cousin getting along. Then again, Kagome could just about get along with anyone and that most likely included Tezuka who despite his glares and stern expressions was human just like everyone else and didn't Kagome manage to befriend Sesshomaru? Sesshomaru who had eyes so cold that Ryoma couldn't hold back shivers whenever the older man turned to look at him.

He was getting off topic but the point was, Kagome was just a normal kind-hearted girl who loves and can be loved by just about anyone. There was nothing weird about her, she just had her share of secrets and Ryoma will take great pleasure in finding out each and every one of them.

"I know what you're thinking," Kagome said, interrupting his train of thought. "Stop it."

He blinked blankly as if he doesn't have the slightest idea what she's talking about but he does. And he knows that she knows he does.

"Ryoma…"

"Che," he said. He pulled his hand away from her warm grasp which no longer tingled at the touch. "I'll just ask Souta." He turned his head away but doesn't miss the comedic way her jaw dropped open. "He'll tell me." And they both know the younger boy will because Souta hero-worships Ryoma's tennis skills like no other and would be more than happy to let Ryoma know everything he wanted to know.

"Echizen Ryoma!"

He smiled faintly at her tone and wondered if he loved his annoying his cousin more than he really should.

**So, how was Kagome's awesome tennis skills? I bet you're all jealous.**

**Guess who's coming next chapter?**


	8. Sunset

**At the end of this chapter, read my author's comment.**

**I.**

**Am.**

**Not.**

**Kidding.**

**Read. It.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha, Prince of Tennis or any of its characters.**

New Beginnings  
>[8] Sunset<p>

Ryoma woke up with a throbbing headache and knew that there was going to be something about that day that he wasn't going to like. He looked over at his alarm clock and sighed; he was late, so very late for morning practice and suspected that he was going to spend it running laps. With a grunt, Ryoma dragged himself out of bed. His usual morning ritual took no longer than ten minutes, as he was used to fighting against the clock and he strolled down the stairs just as the scent of warm breakfast assaulted his senses.

He followed his nose (and stomach) and quietly walked into the kitchen to catch sight of his cousin cooking. And _humming_.

He blinked.

Then it hit him like a ton of bricks and Ryoma thinks he might be sick. Today was the day. Sesshomaru was coming today and Kagome was happy and humming and—why was she so happy? Ryoma knew that his cousin hadn't been in contact with the amber-eyed man so she should feel less happy and more nervous about meeting someone she hadn't seen in a while.

It could, of course be very possible that Kagome wasn't humming because of Sesshomaru but Ryoma reminded himself that for the past week, it had been nothing but, "I need to wait for Sesshomaru…", "Can't get this done without Sesshomaru…" and "Sesshomaru will know…" It drove him nuts.

He narrowed his eyes as she did a little jump and what seemed to be a butt wiggle and decided that he had had enough. Walking deeper into the kitchen, Ryoma approached the table and pulled out a seat, making sure it gave a good screech.

Kagome yelped at the sudden noise and jumped. The egg cooking in the pan that she had been holding jumped with her and with nothing to stop it, it flipped two times in the air and landed onto the ground with a wet _splat. _

Both cousins stared at it for a moment, watching as the running yolk spread out. It reminded Kagome, disgustingly of the time some guy was pushed off the cliff and had landed a few feet away from her. Like the egg yolk, the man's blood had splattered and then spread out underneath him. She resisted a shudder.

Kagome gave Ryoma a cool glare, "You're cleaning that up."

* * *

><p>It hadn't been a good morning and Ryoma was pretty sure that it wasn't going to be a good rest of the day either. He had, of course, been right and had spent the remaining ten minutes of morning practice and even a good chunk of afternoon practice running laps.<p>

Ryoma resisted the urge to groan and wiped off his sweat, preparing himself to change into his school uniform since he wanted nothing more than to go home (maybe hitch a ride with Momo-senpai (without his cousin, thank you very much)) and sleep.

"Echizen has been distracted today," Inui announced. Loudly.

It was only the Regulars left in the changing room but the fact didn't stop Ryoma from glaring at his senpai.

"Wait!" Kikumaru cried out and Ryoma had the oddest sense of déjà vu. "Ochibi—"

"Sesshomaru-sama is coming today, isn't he?" Sasabe-senpai asked in his usual quiet—if slightly, girly—voice.

Ryoma looked at him in surprise. "How…"

Sasabe, despite being a Regular had never been really close to the group, apparently even more anti-social than Ryoma was. He appeared for practice and disappeared right afterwards (as a matter of fact, Ryoma was surprised that he even saw the older boy in the changing room that morning) and kept to himself. He even managed to avoid Kikumaru dragging him out for victory parties and Inui's calculating eyes. Inui who knew everything about Sasabe's tennis style but nothing else.

"The whole school's been talking about it," Fuji offered. "Including the teachers. It's not every day that a CEO will come and visit a student here."

Ryoma's frown hardened. He would bet his life that it was either Momo-senpai or Kikumaru-senpai being the blabber mouth. "He'll probably visit her at my house," he muttered.

"Saa," Fuji sighed. "What's the fun in that?"

"To stay away from the press, probably," Oishi offered.

Momoshiro blinked. "Why would he need to stay away from the press?"

"Hmm," Sasabe said. "He is very good looking."

More than one person in the changing room blinked and stared at the usually quiet man. Momoshiro's mouth dropped and he hesitantly took a step backwards from his locker neighbor which made Kaidou hiss as his rival was now standing too close to him for his comfort.

Ryoma, surprisingly, was the first to recover. "You talk too much, senpai."

Sasabe only smiled at him which, much to Ryoma's surprise disturbed him more than Fuji-senpai's smile does.

By the time he was done changing, it was well past five-thirty. Ryoma prayed that any remaining club members already left. Although, Tezuka was probably forced to stay back in order to lock up after Ryoma. Ryoma took a breath and opened the door to leave. He looked around and felt his jaw muscles twitch in annoyance. Buchou was standing to the side, looking familiarly stoic and forbidding. His cousin and her friends were further away and cuddled around a tennis ball whispering to each to other (Kagome was probably waiting for him). The other regulars were hanging around the tennis courts and at least half the tennis club members were still there, whispering to each other and casting not-so-subtle glances around them.

They were waiting for Sesshomaru.

It wasn't as if the CEO couldn't visit Kagome back at the house. Really. What were the chances of Sesshomaru choosing to go through the press and gaping high school students when he could just go to Ryoma's house and see Kagome there?

Unfortunately for Ryoma (and in tune with his bad day), Sesshomaru chose to visit Kagome at the tennis courts. The man's arrival was silent. Literally.

One minute everyone was whispering and waiting and the next, everyone seemed to notice the man's arrival at once, not a sound escaping anyone's lips.

Ryoma actually dropped his tennis bag in shock as he took in the sight of a young man with short black hair and flashing brown eyes. The face was so obviously Sesshomaru but… but… what happened to the hair? The eyes? The _everything?_

There was a small rustling noise and everyone turned towards it, spotting Higurashi straightening up slowly with her friends. Miroku gave her shoulder a firm squeeze and they watched as the young girl, small in structure, almost timidly walked towards a forbidding-looking CEO.

"I—I," her voice was soft but the wind carried it across the tennis courts. Kagome took a breath and gathered up her courage. Sesshomaru was here. She had her friends. _Sesshomaru _was here. She had the entire tennis team as witnesses in case… anything happened. _Sesshomaru was here!_

Kagome took a breath as Sesshomaru stared at her, his eyes not glittering with familiarity. He obviously didn't remember her which left Kagome only one other option: call him by his name. Like Miroku and Sango who had only remembered her when she called their names, she was more than prepared to do the same thing to Sesshomaru and restore him to his former glory.

She took another breath, wanting to say the demon lord's name, but the words wouldn't make it past her throat especially with Sesshomaru looking like… well, like a human. It probably had to do with the strange everything that has been going on. His human look was probably a mask that would fade away once his memories were restored.

Despite her instincts and memories of the demon lord screaming at her to run, Kagome wanted nothing more than to say Sesshomaru's name—oh! It had been so easy the past week—and see Sesshomaru. Kagome took another breath and just as the name was about to roll off her tongue, she had a very disturbing image of the demon lord's human look melting off of him in front of every as he regained his memories. In tune with that, she had another disturbing image of Sesshomaru's reaction when he finally remembered her and killing her, splattering her blood for all to see.

_Might as well _not _scar the poor tennis boys, _she thought.

Kagome forced a smile. "Would you like to talk in private?"

He raised an eyebrow—oh! The familiarity! And: "Priestess," he greeted.

Kagome gasped and fell onto the ground, her knees buckling, no longer able to support her. She had been mentally prepared to see another familiar face and to defend herself in case Sesshomaru's temper—and yes, he did have one—got the better of him but no matter how mentally prepared she was, she definitely was not prepared for _that. Oh gods, _she thought. _He remembered! _Then: _He never forgot in the first place. _And, of course: _Why is he so human-looking then?_

Sesshomaru breathed out what seemed to be an exasperated sigh. As if he read her mind (she wouldn't be surprise if he had) he said, "Look closely."

Kagome looked, squinting at his figure and blinked when her powers shot to the surface of her eyes, making his human illusion shimmer. It melted away and Kagome found herself staring at his very demon-looking form. Very, very, so very Sesshomaru.

She swallowed. "Sesshomaru."

The demon lord nodded approvingly. "Come," he said. Then he looked up, narrowing his gold eyes at Miroku and Sango as if he was surprised seeing them there. His nostrils flared and the two humans had a feeling that the order extended to them too.

"I can't stand up," Kagome found herself whispering.

Sesshomaru raised his eyebrow again.

When he took a step towards the younger girl, Kagome screeched and jumped backwards, fighting the urge to hide behind a tree. "A-are you going to carry me?" she stuttered.

His second eyebrow joined the first.

Kagome narrowed her eyes at him. Personally she could only see Sesshomaru carrying someone else in two ways. One: princess style since the demon lord had two arms now, Kagome thought he might do it just to show that he could and two: thrown over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. Kagome was not fond of either way and really, just the mere thought of the demon lord touching her so willing made her shudder.

"Are you sure you remember?" she asked, her voice in a mumble since she seems to be in the center of attention. Again.

"My patience wears thin," the demon lord replied.

Kagome smiled.

Miroku and Sango slowly—cautiously—made their way towards the young priestess and the demon lord. With a sigh, Kagome stood up, reaching out and grasping onto Miroku's shirt for support. Sesshomaru eyed her hand, gave a faint sneer at the contact and then turned around and walked away.

The three of them blinked after him before following.

"Bye," Kagome called back cheerfully, knowing that everyone was staring at the three of them. "Have a good day at tennis practice." Obviously, she was so caught up with everything, she probably forgot (or did not even notice) that tennis practice was over and had been over for a while.

Sango rolled her eyes. "Don't they have anything better to do?"

Kagome sighed. "We're probably the most interesting thing that has happened to them in years."

Sango nodded in Sesshomaru's direction. "Illusion?"

"Yea."

"So he remembers you. The real you?"

"Guess so."

Miroku frowned. "Hmm…"

"Do you think that means, he knows what's going on?" Sango asked.

"Probably," Kagome replied. "And you know what? If he does, you think this matter is more important than whatever business matter he had? Making us wait a week for this shit."

The demon lord slowed down slightly and Kagome had an ebbing suspicion that he heard her. She spent the next few seconds it took to walk to his car—unsurprisingly, a limousine—in silence. With a deep breath, the three of them climbed into the limousine after Sesshomaru. Miroku nodded thankfully at the green-eyed driver who, much to his horror winked at him.

The door shut behind them.

Silence.

"You wish to know what's going on?" Sesshomaru asked. Then in front of them—Kagome could tell as his image shimmered again—his human illusion dropped.

"Yes," Kagome replied, clamping down the _"obviously" _that threatened to escape.

Sesshomaru stared at her for a few moments. "I do not know." _For sure, _he wanted to add but ended up not elaborating.

Kagome stared and blinked a few times waiting for the awkward moment where Sesshomaru will laugh at her and tell her that it was a joke. "Well," she said finally. "That's useless."

In front of them, the driver snickered.

"Drive," Sesshomaru hissed out.

Kagome wrinkled her nose when Sesshomaru turned to glare at her.

"You think he'd be nicer," Miroku whispered to Sango, "given their history and all that."

"What history?" Kagome asked, through gritted teeth as she reached out and gave the man a hard twisting pinch.

Miroku yelped but wisely chose not to say anything.

"So," Sango said in an almost sing-song voice. "You're just here to give us a ride around town?"

Sesshomaru narrowed his eyes briefly but otherwise ignored her. He clicked his claws together, an action that made Kagome gulp. "Tell me, priestess, what did you do with the jewel?"

Kagome clenched her eyes shut for a brief moment. _Why the hell do I mess everything up?_

"I told it to disappear, to cease existing."

Sesshomaru made a small noise at the back of his throat. "No wish?"

Kagome narrowed her eyes and leaned closer to him. "My exact words were: Shikon, disappear. Cease your existence." When the demon lord refused to respond, Kagome found herself getting angrier, "I am not an idiot."

"You flatter yourself," the demon lord responded coolly.

_I'm going to strangle him, _Kagome thought wondering why the hell she had been so excited for his visit anyway. _Forget it, I'll just purify the living shit out of him. _Her fingers twitched.

Again, as if reading her mind, Sesshomaru's eyes slid from her face to her fingers.

"Don't. Underestimate. Me," she grounded out.

"I do not."

"You did so."

"I will not."

Their eyes glared and flashed at each other.

Miroku patted Kagome on the shoulder again. "I doubt Lord Sesshomaru will ever underestimate you again, Lady Kagome. Especially since you managed to give Tessaiga to Inuyasha and shoot him in the arm."

Kagome exhaled deeply and leaned back in her seat. "Why do you remember?"

Sesshomaru raised his eyebrow. "I never forgot."

"So… you were… uh, born with all your memories?" She winced at the thought, feeling sorry for whoever modern Sesshomaru's mother was. He must have been one awkward baby.

Sango snickered lightly and Kagome had a suspicion that she was thinking the same thing Kagome was.

"I never died," Sesshomaru said.

Kagome felt herself choke.

"Wait!" Miroku cried out. "Does that mean you don't remember Kagome-chan?"

"I beg your pardon?"

"My head hurts," Sango moaned. "This is so confusing. And I thought it would make more sense if Sesshomaru was here."

* * *

><p>"So," Kagome said a little awkwardly as she sat down in a chair that was probably more expensive than her house (and everything in it, combined). "Are you like… a driver and butler all in one?" she asked the man.<p>

He smiled at her, his teeth seemed to flash in the light. "You could say that."

Sesshomaru stared, his lips quirking upwards in what could be mistaken as a smile.

"Alright," Miroku said, with a sigh. He sipped the tea. "Let's start at the beginning. Kagome-sama?"

Kagome cleared her throat. "After I told the Shikon to disappear, I ended up at the bottom of the well." She eyed Sesshomaru. "You know, the well that allows me to transport between times?"

"Hn."

She twitched. "Anyway, the magic of the well ceased to work after the Jewel's disappearance and I just… returned to my former life for about a year. Then… um, due to some personal problems I decided to move in with my cousin, Ryoma, you know him…" She eyed the demon lord again. "And that's where everything began getting really strange.

"Apparently, my aunt thought that I had friends here… which I have absolutely no memories of."

Sesshomaru frowned.

"My friends," Kagome continued, "Being, of course, Sango, Miroku, Inuyasha, and… uh… yea…" She most definitely avoided the demon lord's eyes.

"I met Sango and Miroku again and both of them didn't remember our times back in the federal era. The only reason they remembered was because of me."

"We did and still do, however," Miroku cut in, "have memories of being friends with Kagome years ago when she used to visit her cousin. We might not remember the _priestess _Kagome-sama but we remember the _child _Kagome-chan. And now… we have two different set of memories."

The four of them fell silent.

Sesshomaru frowned. "About four hundred years ago," he began, "a human witch rose to power."

Kagome blinked.

"She gathered many followers, all humans." A pause. "And all of them directed their hatred towards demons, they believed that all the wrong in the world is the fault of demons. She was ignored at first since human uprisings were not uncommon but the witch was convinced that she had the ability to duplicate the Jewel."

More than one person paled.

"No one believed her," Sesshomaru continued. "The witch disappeared twenty years after her glory and many thought that she had died. She reappeared a hundred years after her original disappearance, shocking many and making her lingering followers wonder if she was a demon in disguise. She claimed she had the blessing of the gods and pulled out what appeared to be the Jewel."

_Oh, gods._

"She called for an audience in front of the four lords and in front of us, demanded the jewel to erase the existence of demons."

_Oh. My. God._

"A blinding light flashed forth from the jewel and when it all died down, the witch and the jewel disappeared and I was covered in a…" he trailed off and seemed to wrinkle his nose slightly in disgust. "…a light…"

Kagome leaned closer.

Sesshomaru cleared his throat. "Similar to that of your power's." He took a sip of his tea, clicking his claw against the smooth surface of his cup. "A week afterwards, lower-class demons began dying out. A month, stronger demons, and a year, only the oldest and strongest demons and their monuments remained."

_Their monuments? _She drew in a sharp breath. "That witch wanted to wipe out the fact that demons ever existed."

Silence.

"Are you…" Miroku asked slightly. "Dying?" _Disappearing?_

"No," he answered. "I remain, along with Inuyasha and a few others, unaffected."

Kagome blinked.

"Finally," Sesshomaru continued. "Sixteen years ago, I've begun sensing demonic aura and each year, I sense more and more."

"So…" Sango said, tilting her head. "The witch's curse is fading?"

"I doubt that," Sesshomaru answered. "You can't make a demon out of nothing." He turned his attention towards Kagome. "Tell me, priestess, how old are you?"

"Sixt—" Kagome twitched.

Sesshomaru nodded. "You don't understand," he said. "I do not like humans."

Kagome leaned closer to Sesshomaru again, clasping her hands in front of her. "I understand very well," she replied seriously.

The demon lord actually had to refrain from twitching at her words. "I would never wipe out the entire human existence. Even I have to fear the consequences."

Miroku nodded in understanding. "Indeed, the world must be balanced."

"Which means," Sango said, jumping in. "When the witch did whatever the witch did, she unbalanced it."

Kagome shuddered. "So the world's going to end?"

"Not if there has been… demon sightings, for the lack of a better term. Like Momoshiro's demonic tennis ball," Miroku pointed out. "Demons have been reappearing."

"And have been for the past sixteen years," Sesshomaru reminded. He glanced coolly at Kagome, "I doubt it's a coincidence."

Kagome swallowed hard. "What do you suppose it means?"

Sesshomaru stayed silent again for a few moments. Kagome's eyes widened as he lowered his head in a small bow of respect.

_Oh. My. God, _Kagome thought. She had always somewhat admired the older demon even back when they had been enemies and there might have been a part of Kagome that had always wanted Sesshomaru's respect or attention. But this… this was just downright frightening.

"Holy priestess, Guardian of the Shikon Jewel, you are to rise in power and bring balance to the world."

* * *

><p>"Have you ever wished you were normal?" Kagome asked later that night as she rinsed a plate before handing it over to Ryoma to dry.<p>

He stared. "I am normal."

"Yea," Kagome replied sadly. "That's what I thought too." She stared at the green plate in her hands and frowned. "Does this look familiar to you?"

Ryoma blinked. "You ate off of it today."

"That's not what I meant," Kagome muttered distantly. She glared at the plate. There truly was something about that plate that reminded her of something. She narrowed her eyes in concentration and then jumped in shock, giving off a yelp when her powers crackled to life, pink light danced across her hands.

Ryoma and Kagome stared at the young priestess's hands.

"Ryoma…" Kagome said softly, looking sideways at her cousin.

The young tennis prodigy sighed and grabbed the green plate out of her hands. He worked on getting it dried before placing it back into the cabinet. "Tell me when you're ready," he said, placing the drying cloth back where it belongs and began making his way out of the kitchen.

"Hey," Kagome said.

Ryoma turned his head in her direction.

Kagome smiled at him. "I love you."

"Che." He left the room.

Kagome smiled fondly and had a brief suspicion that Ryoma might have already called Souta. She shook her head and made her way up the stairs to prepare for bed. She doubted that he did but even if Ryoma had, he wouldn't let her know that he knew until she was ready for him to know. Like always, she knew that Ryoma would be there if she needed anyone to talk to.

That night, Kagome dreamt of green eyes.

**There are two things I want to address:**

**1. Do not ask me who Kagome's ending up with. Do not **_**spam **_**me with Private Messages, asking me who Kagome's ending up with. I do not want to wake up with fourteen private messages from two people asking me who Kagome's ending up with. It's annoying. Stop. **

**As I have said in the last chapter: What makes you think, even for a second, that I will tell you? If I tell you that, what is the point of reading the story? I might as well tell you everything.**

**2. Do not ask me when I'm going to update the story. **_**Especially**_** if I just updated **_**a day ago. **_**Truthfully, I'm fine if it's been two weeks and I haven't updated but if I just updated not even five minutes ago and you're asking me for the next update, it makes me want to **_**not **_**update.**

**I'm not trying to be mean. Really, I'm not. I love writing (and improving my writing skills or lack thereof) but there are certain things that really, really annoy me. I love getting reviews and I won't go out on my way to demand them but if every single one of them is:**

"_**Update. Update. Update. Update."**_

**Or**

"_**Who's Kagome going to end up with? Huh? Huh? Is it Fuji? Momoshiro? Sesshomaru? Inuyasha? Who? Who? Maybe Kikumaru? Or Kaidou? Who's Kagome going to end up with?"**_

**No. **

**Just stop. **

**Stop.**

**Finally, I hope I'm not discouraging anyone from reviewing because I really love reading all your reviews (especially those that tell me what they like and don't like about the story). And really, I'm totally fine with:**

"_**Great story! Love the chapter. Update whenever."**_

**But if you're typing this out:**

"_**When are you going to update?" **_

**Especially ten minutes after I just updated, do not click that post button.**

**And once again, I'm not trying to be mean, really. And I apologize if I hurt anyone's feelings. Don't be afraid to review (I swear I don't bite) and tell me what you think of the story and I sincerely hope this will be my last rant. Ever.**

**Thank you for sticking with me.**


	9. Colors of the Rainbow

**I had someone ask me before but… did the explanation on what's going on in the previous chapter seem too confusing to you? Because there won't be another explanation like that… not really so if anyone is confused, I'll be more than happy to explain it to you. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha, Prince of Tennis or any of its characters.**

New Beginnings  
>(9) Colors of the Rainbow<p>

For the past two nights Kagome dreamt so much green she might as well answered to Dorothy from The Wizard of Oz. She woke up late on a bright Sunday afternoon, blinking the last of what seemed to be green oranges from her eyelids. _Never had dreams like this before, _she thought, rubbing her eyes with the back of her hands. Kagome smiled almost mockingly. _It might be trying to tell me something?_

Green.

Her thought automatically flew towards Sesshomaru poisonous yellow-green acid. Her smile fell.

Kagome shook her head, reminding herself that Sesshomaru was a friend now and friends do not kill other friends (or at least, she hoped not).

She yawned, stretching out her limbs as far out as they could go. With a groan, Kagome rolled away from the sunlight and promptly rolled right off her bed and onto the floor with a loud _thud. _Well, today was going to be a great day, she just knew it.

Kagome stumbled down the stairs, still half asleep and stared at the scene in front of her. She blinked. Her cousin's house had apparently been taken over by his teammates.

Fuji was the first one to see her. "Higurashi-san," he greeted warmly. "Good morning!"

"Uh… yes." Kagome flushed and glared at Ryoma. "You could have told me your friends were coming." She pulled her pajamas almost shyly and wondered why the hell she hadn't heard them from upstairs especially with all the noise they were making. Ryoma's friends weren't exactly what one would call… quiet.

"I didn't know they were coming either," he replied. He glared at Momoshiro.

"A celebration for winning our match yesterday," Fuji added helpfully.

"Oh…" Kagome smoothed her tangled hair with her fingers. "I see… well, congratulations." Not that, of course, she cared at all. Besides, wouldn't Ryoma win all his matches anyway?

"We usually go to Taka-senpai's sushi shop for celebrations," Ryoma replied.

"I-I thought it would be fun going elsewhere for a change," Momoshiro stuttered. "Besides Echizen has his own tennis court in his backyard!" He averted his gaze from the young girl as her pajama top was too far down for comfort.

"You are disgusting," Ryoma muttered.

Momoshiro flushed.

"Have a match with me, Momo-sempai," Ryoma continued. He made his way towards his racket and pulled the familiar red racket from its bag. He looked back at his taller friend and glared. "I'll trash you."

Oishi laughed almost nervously. "Echizen… that's not a good idea. Momoshiro hurt his wrist yesterday, remember?"

There was something about the younger man's glare that told him that no, Echizen did not care and he probably wouldn't care unless Momoshiro was dead or something. He shivered.

Kagome laughed softly at the sight. Ryoma was actually hanging out with friends! She was so proud of him and was sure that Rinko must be too. Ryoma never was a person to talk about others but if she remembered correctly, when he had started middle school, whenever Ryoma talked about his tennis teammates back then (the same ones now, surprisingly), he almost seemed… fond.

Her cousin glanced up at her and frowned. Kagome had a feeling that he was reading her mind.

"Go change," he ordered.

Kagome immediately blushed upon being reminded of her current state of dress. "Sorry," she squeaked out and flew up the stairs and back into her room.

Ryoma nodded slightly, satisfied. He resisted the urge, to once again, glare at Momoshiro.

"Are you being a little too possessive of Higurashi-san?" Fuji asked slyly, opening his blue eyes and smiled almost knowingly at the younger boy. The young tennis prodigy frowned but didn't comment further. He sincerely hoped that Fuji wasn't implying that him and Kagome had a relationship beyond being normal cousins. He almost made a remark about Yuuta but decided better. If anyone was way to possessive over their family members, it was Fuji-senpai.

When Kagome came back down the stairs, the tennis Regulars have fallen into another comfortable conversation broken only when Ryoma's cell phone gave off a rather loud _beep. _He frowned and pulled it out, wondering who would text him (especially since all his friends were with him).

"For you," he muttered, passing his cell phone to Kagome when she took a seat on the couch next to him.

"Huh?"

"Sesshomaru."

Kagome paled. She leaned away from Ryoma's outstretch hands. "I don't want to talk to him right now."

He stared at her.

"Don't ignore your boyfriend, nya," Kikumaru teased.

Kagome flushed. "He's not my boyfriend." She wondered if she should just give up. She glanced over at Ryoma again, who was staring at her, still holding out his phone for her. With a sigh, she took it and then stared at the screen. "I-is this Sesshomaru's number?" She tilted her head. She had, of course (attempted) to call Sesshomaru before but had forgotten it.

Ryoma stared at her.

Kagome pursed her lips, hesitating and not wanting to call the number.

Ryoma sighed, took his phone and made Kagome's decision for her.

"No!" Kagome squeaked out. "I'm not ready to talk to him yet!" She jumped for the phone but Ryoma held it out of her reach and his teammates watched as Kagome practically straddled her cousin.

_At least Higurashi-san isn't still wearing her pajamas,_ Momoshiro thought.

"Give it back!" Kagome squealed.

"_What the fuck do you want, bastard?"_ a voice sounded through the phone. And even though it was on speaker, it was rather loud.

Kagome froze and everyone person turned, staring with wide eyes at the small innocent phone in Ryoma's hands.

"_I'm in New York, you asswipe," _Inuyasha's familiar voice continued. _"I don't know if you remember but it's two in the fucking morning where I am."_

Kagome reached for the phone again, hands shaking and this time, Ryoma did not pull it further from her reach. She cradled the phone close to her. "Inuyasha…"

"_What's so fucking important that you need to—" _he cut himself off.

Silence.

"_Kagome?"_

Kagome laughed, hearing his voice made her insides flutter in excitement. It's been so long since she heard his voice and even his less than beautiful vocabulary was welcome. She swallowed. "Inuyasha."

"Kagome," Ryoma muttered. "Get off of me." Her knee was stabbing into his stomach.

She gave him a half-hearted glare. "Just sit still."

A crash followed by a string of colorful words could be heard from the other end of the phone. Kagome pulled the phone away and stared at it with wide eyes. She laughed, standing up and making her way out of the living room and back up the stairs. "Inuyasha! Are you okay?"

"_Fucking wench,"_ he groaned out. _"I'll kill you."_

The occupants of the room watched as Kagome walked away with an unfamiliar bright smile on her face. "Inuyasha," they heard her say fondly. "It's been five hundred years and you're still wearing that?"

Whatever the man replied was lost to their ears as Kagome wandered too far from them.

"Did she say five hundred years?" Momoshiro said with a frown.

They stared at him.

"What kind of inside joke is that?" Momoshiro continued.

Ryoma raised his eyebrows. "It's an inside joke," he replied. "So obviously you wouldn't understand it."

Momoshiro huffed.

"That… Inuyasha… he has a rather unique vocabulary," Fuji commented.

"He's always been like that," Ryoma said, shrugging.

Tezuka stared.

Catching his captain's stare of disbelief, Ryoma defended, "My father's like that too."

"Wait," Oishi commented. "I thought you guys were _seven _the last time you met."

"He's a couple years older than us," Ryoma commented, not really caring. He wisely chose not to mention that by a couple, he actually meant two. Which made Inuyasha nine when such colorful words were already deeply engraved into the man's vocabulary.

Tezuka cleared his throat. "They do not seem to be the best influential figures."

The young man glanced up at his captain. Tezuka wasn't the type to tell Ryoma to do something just for the fun of it so it was highly possible that he saw something that he, Ryoma himself had missed. "Kagome is fine," Ryoma pressed. "I stay away from Sesshomaru and I don't like Inuyasha."

Tezuka stared at him.

"She does give off an uneasy feeling," agreed Fuji with open eyes. Inui's eyebrows shot upwards at the genius's words and he took out his familiar green notebook.

"What do you mean?" Kikumaru asked worriedly.

"Hm…" Fuji said. "How do I put this?" He tapped a long finger against his chin. "Higurashi-san seems to be hiding something."

"You don't have secrets, senpai?" Ryoma countered.

Fuji opened his eyes again. "Perhaps," he answered. "But I don't think Higurashi-san hiding a usual type of secret."

Kikumaru gasped. "Maybe she's actually an axe-murderer," he said.

Ryoma snorted softly. "Sure, and I'm a slasher," he muttered.

"Higurashi-san's not weird," Momoshiro defended.

Kaidou hissed in amusement.

"You would say that," Ryoma commented.

"W-what is that—"

"You're not exactly being subtle," Fuji said with a smile.

Momoshiro blushed.

Before they could tease Momoshiro further on the subject, Kagome made her way back down the stairs, catching everyone's attention. She smiled brightly at them. "Sorry about that!"

"You seem happy," Fuji said.

"Hmm…" Kagome agreed, still smiling happy as she handed Ryoma his cell phone back. "Thanks."

Ryoma stared. "He's not… coming, is he?"

Kagome laughed. "He's in New York." She sighed happily and reclaimed her seat. "Tell Sesshomaru I said thanks."

Ryoma frowned. "You tell him."

"Are you scared of him or something?" Kagome said, laughing.

"Are you?" he countered back.

"Yes," Kagome answered seriously.

Ryoma stared at her for a few moments, blinking at her unexpected answer. "Heeh," he muttered softly. He sighed and then shrugged. "He isn't as intimating with black hair."

Kagome stared sideways at her cousin. From what she knew, Sesshomaru should always have kept up his human illusion but from what Ryoma was implying, Sesshomaru didn't do that with him. Either that or there was something else on play here (which, in Kagome's case, there always was). "We'll talk later," she said seriously.

"Hmm…"

"Sesshomaru, huh?" Kikumaru said. "You sure make scary friends."

Kagome turned towards him. "You have no idea."

"But at least he's rich and powerful, ne?" A pause. "And good-looking, according to Sasabe."

Kagome wrinkled her nose. "If you're implying what I think you're implying, that's disgusting."

Kikumaru laughed.

"And," Kagome continued. "I'm fine about you teasing me about that and all… but don't do it in front of Sesshomaru. He'll kill me." Kagome shuddered, as if to emphasize her point. "If I'm lucky."

Oishi frowned. "I thought you guys were friends?" he asked worriedly.

"Oh yes," Kagome breathed. "That too. Please don't mention that to Sesshomaru."

"Eh?"

Kagome stayed silent and was thankful when the conversation went from her to their tennis match yesterday. While she was obviously left out of their tennis-related conversation, Kagome didn't mind. She preferred listening to something she didn't understand than talk about her relationship (or lack thereof) with Sesshomaru.

She looked at Ryoma again and noticed that he was beginning to fall asleep. Her lips quirked upwards, it was a relief to know that while her life was currently getting ripped in half, there were things that were still the same as always. She didn't so much as flinched when Ryoma's head fell sideways, hitting the edge of her shoulder. Kagome, however, did wince when he slid off the edge of her shoulder and face-planted into her lap.

"Bastard," she heard Momoshiro whisper as everyone attention focused on Ryoma.

Kagome laughed softly, reaching out to adjust Ryoma into a more comfortable position.

"It's good to see that you guys are still so close," Oishi said softly, "despite being apart for so long."

"Oh no," Kagome replied. She brushed away a loose hair from Ryoma's face. "We might not have seen each other since we were kids but we still—or at least, used to—call each other every week."

"Echizen never mentioned that..." Momoshiro muttered.

"We should leave," Tezuka said, standing up.

His fellow regulars followed his example and began gathering up their stuff.

"I would see you guys out but..." Kagome trailed off.

"It's fine," Tezuka answered and then bowed. Kagome blinked rapidly and bowed her head too. There was just something about that older boy that made one want to follow his perfect-teenager example.

"Echizen must be tired," Fuji commented. "That match yesterday might have taken more out of him than he let on."

As if hearing his words, Ryoma turned his head to the left, burrowing into Kagome's stomach. "Che."

Tezuka raised his eyebrows. He gave a slight shook of his head before turning away and leaving the room, his teammates following faithfully behind him.

Kagome strained her ears and waited until she heard the _click_ when the front door closed. She glanced amusingly at her cousin and pinched his cheek softly. "You are _so _rude," she said.

Ryoma's eyes slid open and gold met blue. "Hmm," he mumbled. "They shouldn't even have been here to begin with."

"Oh?" Kagome raised an eyebrow and then forced it back down again. Apparently seeing Sesshomaru the other day was quite influential. "What does that mean?"

"Momo-senpai thought it would be a "change" to hang out here."

"You guys said that already."

Ryoma yawned. "I've known him since middle school. He goes where the food is. There's not much food here."

Kagome tilted her head. She didn't get it but the fact didn't bother her. Kagome never pretended that she knew Ryoma's friends anyway. "Well... if you put it that way, I can see how that's unusual. But..."

"He has a crush on you." He huffed.

Kagome gave a small jump in surprise and she looked back down at Ryoma who was staring back with an almost calculating look. "Eh?"

"He _likes _you."

_"Eh?"_

"It means—"

"I know what it means," Kagome interrupted, her face growing warm. "I—oh gods! That's awkward. I wish you hadn't told me that."

"Hmm..."

They fell silent again. Kagome pressed a hand against her warm cheeks, shaking her head slightly as if trying to expel the thought from her head. "Oh dear, what am I going to do?"

Ryoma stared.

"Everything's going to be so awkward now!"

"Tell him you're going out with Sesshomaru," Ryoma said, rolling his face back into her stomach. It might work; everyone seemed to be rather intimated by the older man. Although… Momo-senpai was rather stubborn when it came to things he wanted.

"Sesshomaru..." Kagome muttered. "Ryoma, what's your relationship with him?"

"Relationship," repeated Ryoma. "Don't have one."

"How did you guys meet? Why did he want to sponsor you?" He didn't answer. Kagome rolled him over again so that she could stare straight down at his face. "Ryoma."

"My secret," he mumbled, the corners of his mouth twitched upwards in amusement. He rolled.

"Ryoma!"

"My secret," he repeated.

Kagome groaned. "Ugh! I can't believe you're using that against me!"

"You're warm," he said, quietly.

"Don't fall asleep," Kagome commanded, poking him in the cheek. He shivered. Kagome frowned and reached down, laying a cool hand on his forehead. "Are you coming down with something?"

"Hmm..."

His forehead didn't feel warm or anything but there was something about Ryoma's current attitude that was making warning bells in her head ring. He reached up and grabbed her hands again. "Your hand tingles."

"It has to do with the pink light."

Ryoma looked at her and then back down at their joined hands. "Hmm..."

It was quite possible that Ryoma was also pulling a Momoshiro and Tezuka and was beginning to show some demonic powers of his own. She sighed and hoped that when this is all over and Ryoma gets all the demonic powers that he's supposed to get in order to balance the world or whatever, she doesn't end up purifying him by accident.

"It feels nice," Ryoma whispered, closing his eyes again.

"Does it?" Kagome asked, raising her eyebrows in surprise.

Kagome reached down, wiggled her fingers into Ryoma's pocket and pulled out his cell phone. She glanced down at her cousin. "Does Sesshomaru have a personal number?" she asked, not wanting to go through that secretary of his again.

He stayed silent.

_Which means either, "I don't know," or "No," _Kagome thought.

Kagome flipped open the cell phone and scrolled down through his recent calls. She raised her eyebrows amusingly when she noticed that the most recent calls were Inuyasha and Sesshomaru. Kagome clicked her tongue. Beyond that, she noticed a long list of incoming calls from _"Buchou"._

"You're sure cozy with Tezuka."

Ryoma eyes slid open again. He huffed slightly and turned away from her. "I'm usually late for practices," he mumbled. "And matches." A pause. "And celebration parities." Another pause. "And—"

"I get it," Kagome said, laughing. She shook her head lightly and stared at Ryoma's phone again. Her fingers hovered over the phone for a moment before she pressed Sesshomaru's number. The shrill ring of the phone filled the otherwise silent air.

Then:

"_Hello, welcome to Wakagami Corporation, how may we assist you?"_

Kagome rolled her eyes.

"I want to talk to Sesshomaru," Ryoma responding, turning once again so he was lying on his back again. He didn't bother opening his eyes.

"_Your name, please, sir?"_

Now Ryoma really did open his eyes. "Echizen Ryoma," he said, glaring at the phone.

"_Echizen-sama! Hang on a second, please!"_

Kagome rolled her eyes again.

"_Sesshomaru, speak."_

She had not expected Sesshomaru to respond so fast and jumped at his voice. As she fumbled with Ryoma's phone, Kagome had to tighten her hold on it to make sure that she didn't drop it on her cousin's face. "Sesshomaru," Kagome greeted. "I wanted to thank you for giving me Inuyasha's number."

Silence.

"_Is that all?"_

Kagome resisted the urge to shout. "Is there any particular reason why you sponsored Ryoma?"

"Cheater," her cousin mumbled.

A pause. _"Are you alone?"_

Kagome looked down at Ryoma. "It's fine," she murmured.

"_Hn."_

"I plan to tell Ryoma everything."

"_Hn."_

She resisted the urge to bang her forehead on a hard wall. Sesshomaru's "hn"was just as bad as Inuyasha's "feh" and Ryoma's "che". _Sesshomaru, _she pleaded in her mind. _Please. At least give me two syllables._

"_I caught the scent of your family's blood about a hundred years ago."_

Ryoma raised his eyebrows and he eyed the phone. When he turned towards his cousin she was also staring at the phone with a faraway look in her eyes. It was a familiar look, one that he had seen it on her face ever since she moved in with him.

"_Inuyasha wanted to… see you again. However, he did not wish to change the course of history and decided that _when _he saw you, he was not going to confront you. So we waited and followed your ancestors."_

Kagome snorted in amusement. She caste her cousin a single glance when he sat up from his position, eyes flickering towards her again. "And you completely missed me and stalked Ryoma instead?"

"_Hn."_

"So why didn't you look for me? You knew Ryoma was related to me."

"_In what way, we did not know; he could have been your ancestor. We assumed we were not in the right time period."_

Kagome sat up. "What? What do you mean?"

Sesshomaru chuckled, the sound sending shivers through Kagome. "_We followed your blood,"_ he continued. _"And… your style of dress was quite unique back then."_

Kagome froze. For some reason, she did not feel like listening anymore.

"_The shorter the lengths of those uniforms became, we knew we were getting closer to your time."_

"That's…" Kagome hesitated, trying to find the right word. "That's kind of sick."

"_Indeed. However, our memory… we thought your skirt was shorter back then."_

"T-that—that's just because you weren't used to it!" Kagome defended.

Sesshomaru snorted. _"Indeed."_

"It's perfectly normal!"

"_Hn."_

"So you're sponsoring Ryoma to keep an eye on him, hoping to meet me?"

"_Yes."_

"Oh… I thought there was more to it."

"_What do you mean?"_

Kagome pulled down a lock of her hair and twirled it between her fingers. "Well… he said my hand tingles." She gave Ryoma another look and almost smiled. The poor boy must have been so confused at the moment but he wasn't letting it show on his face. "So I thought… you know… you knew he was involved somehow or whatever. And you're just keeping an eye on that and everything."

"_Your hand…" _Sesshomaru repeated. _"He might be more involved than you believe."_

Kagome sighed. "I'm afraid of that."

They fell into a somewhat comfortable silence. Finally, _"I am busy right now. Call me when you have something important to tell me." _

"What?" Kagome asked, shocked. "Jackass! Wait—"

"_And stay away from my brother. His influence on your vocabulary is less than desired."_

"Give me your personal number!" Kagome said quickly, hoping that he heard her because she was listening to the dial tone just as she finished speaking. "What a jerk," she mumbled.

She was ready to punch in his number again when the phone beeped at her, signaling that it was out of batteries but Kagome wouldn't be surprised if Sesshomaru somehow made it do it. That man wasn't human after all. She sighed and then looked up at Ryoma who was staring at her expectantly.

Kagome smiled. "Want to hear a story?"

**Of course I'm writing Ryoma's reaction in the next chapter and I'm not sure how I'm going to go about doing that. **


	10. Powers of the Heart

**As you guys can probably tell, I'm slowing down the updates of this story… which is due to the fact that my classes are starting and I spend most of my time studying. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha, Prince of Tennis or any of its characters.**

New Beginnings  
>[10] Powers from the Heart<p>

"Hey, I'm going out, can you tell mom for me?"

Sango looked up from her desk and stared in the familiar brown eyes of her brother. She frowned.

"Sango-nee?"

His eyes were familiar… but not. It was the same shape and color and everything else but it didn't belong to the Kohaku she was used to. It wasn't sparkling with childish warmth like Kohaku's was before Naraku and it wasn't flat or haunted like it was after Naraku. This was Kohaku, she knew. Her brother… but not.

She wondered if this was what Kagome felt before she and Miroku regained their memories.

"Uh?" Kohaku blinked. "Sango? You okay there?"

Sango swallowed and forced a smile. "I'm fine," she assured. "Come here and give nee-chan a hug." She opened her arms.

Kohaku stared at her.

And stared.

He shook his head.

"You're crazy."

Sango watched as he left and then sighed again. When she had first remembered, it was the demon-slayer Sango that had seem like a dream. But right now… right now she felt as if she _was _the demon-slayer Sango and was now currently living a dream. _Since when has my life been so complicated?_

She sighed again and opened her drawer, pulling out an old photo album.

Running her fingers across the smooth cover, Sango sucked in a deep breath. "Okay," she whispered to herself. "I can do this."

She squeezed her eyes shut and threw the cover open. Counting to three, Sango slowly open one eye and looked at the page, almost sighing in relief. _Nothing. _She flipped the page and smiled. _Aw! I was so cute back then!_

Another page. _Look at itsy-bitsy Kohaku!_

Another page. _Is that Chiharo from elementary school?_

Another page.

Sango gasped.

_Well. Shit._

She traced the outline of the child figure with a finger. Sesshomaru had said that Kagome was back in her time to bring balance to the world or something. And _they _were here most likely to help her with her job. It made sense.

It also made sense that they, Sango and Miroku had memories of Kagome when they were younger. It was so that they could be _linked _to the young priestess. It made finding Kagome so much easier. So of course it made sense that she had memories of something that possibly never happened. It made sense! She understood it. So why, why, why, _why _did she have physical evidence of Kagome-chan (not Kagome-sama, according to Miroku) in her photo album.

Sango sighed and squinted at the picture. A young Sango and Kagome (was it even her?) were holding hands and smiling at the camera. _I hope this doesn't complicate things, _she prayed. She couldn't help but wonder if physical evidence of the existence of Kagome-chan meant anything. Knowing the direction her life was currently going… it probably did. _At least, this means I'm not mentally insane, _she thought humorlessly.

She slipped her fingers into the transparent sheet and wiggled the picture out, knowing that she would need to bring this subject up with her friends. And Sesshomaru.

Sango turned the page.

And gasped.

Then blinked.

"Well, well, well," she murmured amusingly.

* * *

><p>"A <em>two-tailed <em>cat demon?" He blinked.

Kagome blinked back. Then exploded. "I just told you my entire life's story from what Sesshomaru—a _demon—_believes since I've been born, to me falling down the Bone Eater's Well to my time traveling adventures, to what I believe is going on in the world right now and you just concentrate on a cat with two tails? A _demon _cat with two tails?"

Ryoma looked over at Karupin. He tilted his head. "Does its big form have two tails too?"

"_Ryoma!" _Kagome screeched. She breathed deeply, attempting to get her emotions back under wraps. "Or did you already find things out from Souta?"

He shook his head slowly.

Kagome's fingers twitched and she actually had to force her hand down and away from her cousin's neck. "That's not even _weird," _she groaned. "There's two-tailed cats in the…" Her hand fluttered up and down. "…the normal world. Siamese twins or whatever. There's even cats with two heads! Why are you freaking out about that?"

"I'm not freaking out," he pointed out.

"_Exactly! _Why?"

Ryoma shrugged. "It's not like your story doesn't match up with what has been going on."

"And what exactly _has _been going on?"

Ryoma blinked. Huh, as if she didn't know. "Your pink light—"

"My _priestess powers_," Kagome insisted.

"Sesshomaru."

Kagome leaned closer. "And what about Sesshomaru?"

Ryoma sighed. It looks as if he didn't have a choice, Kagome was going to get him to talk no matter what. And well… she had taken the time to tell him everything, he might as well do the same. "When we—" he frowned. "When _I _was younger, Sesshomaru always had… his… demonic physical appearance."

She blinked and then waved a hand over her face. "You mean markings and all?"

Ryoma stared at Kagome, confused for a moment. He gave his head a quick shake as he remembered. "No. No markings."

"What about the pointy ears? The fangs? Claws?"

He shook his head again. Really. One would think that those things would have been dead giveaways. But then again… with the technology these days…

It was strange to know that she had been freaking out the past few days wondering how the hell she was going to tell Ryoma her situation and his reaction wasn't even what she had expected. She sighed and then went back to think over the situation again. "It might be because Tezuka forced you to run all those laps," she said finally. "You were tired, so your powers are probably exhausted."

"Heeh."

"You said my hand tingled," Kagome reminded and pulled Ryoma's warm hand into her own. She couldn't feel the tingle herself but it was either because she already hung out with Miroku too much or Ryoma's powers weren't really there yet. "In a good way," she added. "Which means, your powers are more similar to my own than that of a demons."

He stared at her and then scowled. "No."

She responded with a flat look. "I hate to say it… but there are other things to worry about than the color of your purification powers."

"I'm not worried about the color," Ryoma responded stubbornly.

"Oh really?" Kagome sighed. "Anyway, we _are _related so your powers might not even be related to what's going on."

His lips quirked up slightly. _"You _are what's going on."

"That's not something I want to be reminded of," Kagome mumbled. She buried herself in her self-pity for a moment before brightening up. "Hey!" she exclaimed. "At least you're going to be with me from now on, huh?"

Ryoma scoffed. "I have tennis."

"What?" Kagome gasped. "Ryoma!"

He smiled lightly but didn't say anything. Instead he allow himself a moment to think about his life since Kagome moved in. As much as he liked his cousin, he had completely called the fact that his life would never be the same again. Of course, it wasn't what he imagined either. She was reuniting with her friends, yes but also bringing with her a whole lot of supernatural issues.

"Show me?" he asked.

Kagome looked up from her own thoughts. "Huh?"

"Your powers."

She frowned. "Haven't you already seen them?"

"No."

She eyed him for a moment, debating with herself whether or not she was going to do as he said. "Alright," Kagome finally agreed. She stood up and stretched, pushing her arms upwards. "Come on."

He stared at her.

"Where are we going?"

"Sesshomaru's house."

Ryoma paused at her words.

Kagome smiled at his expression and reached into her pocket, pulling out a keycard. "See this?"

He stared.

"It's Sesshomaru's."

Ryoma frowned. He had a suspicion.

Kagome gave the keycard a smile, her eyes twinkling in excitement. "When I left his house the other day, he said that since I'll probably be saving the world again, I'll need to sharpen up my powers. I can stop by his house and use his practice hall whenever."

"He said that?" Ryoma asked.

Kagome frowned. "Okay… I paraphrased."

Truthfully, what Sesshomaru actually had said was, "_I can feel that your powers has weakened, priestess. Pathetic, really. It has only been a year for you, yes?" _And when he handed her the keycard: "_You'll need it." _His words were accompanied by a sneer.

He sighed, lips twitching in an attempt to hold back a smile and stood up.

They took a cab to Sesshomaru's house since Ryoma's parents were out. The car ride, much to Ryoma's disgust took almost an hour, being stuck in traffic for almost twenty of those minutes. He wondered if he should have just told Kagome that it would probably be better if she just showed him in his backyard. Less trouble… but also more public, now that he thought about it.

The cab slowed down upon reaching the outer gates that would lead them to Sesshomaru's house.

"Can you press that button?" Kagome asked the driver politely, nodding at the video intercom to the driver's left.

He rolled down the windows and did as she said and then pressed it again when no one answered.

"_Hello," _Sesshomaru's driver / butler (Kagome reminded herself that she needed to get his name) greeted. She watched as he leaned closer to the screen. _"Excuse me, uh… are we expecting you?"_

Kagome squeezed herself between the two front seats. "Hi!"

"_Ah! Lady… Lady Kagome!"_

"Uh… yes, just… just Kagome is fine."

"_I'll open the gates for you right away."_

Kagome grinned, and leaned back into her seat. It took another five seconds for them to go from the front gates to the front entrance, making Kagome realize exactly how big Sesshomaru's property was. Which, she thought, is rather exciting because that meant that the training hall should be big too.

Kagome thanked the driver, and in her excitement, quickly pulled Ryoma out of the cab and handed money to the driver at the same time. Without another word, she pulled Ryoma up the steps leading to door.

"Would you calm down?" Ryoma managed to grunt out. If this continued, his left arm would be useless in tennis tomorrow.

The door opened just as they reached it. "Good evening," he greeted again.

Kagome smiled. "This is my cousin, Ryoma," she introduced. Then blushed. "I'm sorry, I never got your name last time."

"Tatsuki," he answered. "I'm guessing you're here for the training hall?"

"Yes!" Kagome bowed politely. "Thank you Tatsuki-san."

He smiled, directing his arm towards the left. "This way, Kagome-sama."

They made their way towards the training hall in relative silence. Kagome finally decided to put her cousin out of his misery and dropped her hold on his arm. She looked at Tatsuki out of the corner of her eyes and took in his appearance. She had no doubt in her mind that she was looking at a demon, but whatever illusion he had wrapped himself in was strong enough that her powers was not able to allow her to see what hid underneath it all.

Which, she realized shakily, was either because he was strong enough (like Sesshomaru) where she would be forced to _consciously bring _her powers out or he was some human that Sesshomaru trusted with his past.

"You have green eyes," she noted softly.

"Eh?" He turned towards her, green eyes flashing. "Ah… yes." He then stopped and pulled open two large double doors. "Well, here we are."

Kagome stepped in and literally stopped breathing as she saw how vast the room really was. Not to mention, it was well armed with… well, just about everything including…_ Oh my god, _she thought. _Is that Hirakotsu?_

"You needn't to be afraid of destroying anything," Tatsuki said. "The room and everything in here is reinforced by barriers." He gave her a bright smile. "I'll leave you to it." Tatsuki stepped out of the room, closing the heavy doors behind him.

Kagome managed a late smile, still taking her time to take everything in.

"Kagome?"

"Huh?" she asked, head snapping around towards her cousin.

He stared at her.

"Oh right," Kagome said, making her way towards a set of bows. Her fingers trailed up their smooth wood and she smiled lightly. One of them tingled under her touch, making her tilt her head in confusion. Upon closer look, Kagome realized that the bow was hers, from almost five hundred years ago, reinforced with a rather strong barrier. She swallowed hard, her throat tight, not believing that Sesshomaru had kept it all these years.

She picked it, along with a quiver of bows up, knowing that no matter how old the wood of the bow was, it would be able to hold together. If it could survive through the destruction of Naraku, it could survive through anything. Kagome hummed under her breath as she made her way out of the weapon corner and towards one end of the vast training hall. She turned to face the target at the end of the other side of the room.

"You're going to shoot from here?"

Kagome looked at him from the corner of her eyes. "Aren't you able to hit the target with a tennis ball from this distance?"

"Hmph."

"It's the same thing," Kagome said with a roll of her eyes.

Ryoma stayed silent, waiting patiently.

Kagome took a deep breath, closing her eyes so she could concentrate of on getting the feel of her unused powers. She took another breath. _Here we go, _she thought. Nimble fingers pulled an arrow out of the quiver slung over her back. She notched it into her bow, leveled it and pulled back the string.

Ryoma stared, hairs on the back of his neck standing up and he could feel a slight breeze despite being indoors. He was surprised to see that despite the fact that he had seen Kagome shoot with her powers before, this time was nothing like the first time she had done it in front of him. Last time, he only saw the flash when the arrow struck the target, but this time, he could see waves of Kagome's unique pink energy expanding out from her hands and surrounding the arrow.

"Let's see how well your barrier can hold up," Kagome mumbled and then released.

With sharp eyes, Ryoma saw the hit the red bull's eye perfectly in the middle but instead of sinking into said target, the contact point crackled with pink and blue energy. He blinked and then turned his attention back towards Kagome, wondering if she was behind all of this.

His cousin had her eyes trained on her arrow, narrowed in concentration.

He turned again.

With a final crackle, the arrow flew away from the target reminding Ryoma of the time when Kagome was hit with the _Jack Knife._ _It must be the barrier, _he realized. That's where the blue energy came from.

"Damn," Kagome breathed. "Sesshomaru _is _right. I am rusty."

"Could you have broken it?"

Kagome frowned. "Mm… maybe. I used to be able to break Naraku's… with the Shikon's influence so I don't know why I wouldn't be able to break Sesshomaru's." She shuddered at her next words. "Unless, of course, Sesshomaru's just that powerful." She sighed. "I wouldn't be surprised if he is."

He looked over at the arrow again, which was, unsurprisingly, smoking. "What else can you do?"

"Huh?"

"Besides shoot arrows."

"Shoot _purification _arrows," Kagome corrected. She wrinkled her nose in thought. "I can create barriers, sense the jewel—which isn't important anymore, sense demons, purify demons and that's about it." She paused. "Oh! I can still sit Inuyasha!" Of course it wasn't exactly one of her priestess powers but she still had the ability to sit the older man and deemed it important enough to mention.

He stared at her.

"I might show you when we see him again," she said with a grin. Ah, she missed that.

He blinked.

"Anyway," Kagome said. "Do you think I'll be able to see Tezuka play a serious match? I kind of want to observe him."

"No."

"No?"

He frowned. "Buchou always plays seriously but he barely plays full-out."

Kagome raised her eyebrows. "And… you can't get him to do it?"

Ryoma scowled, which was all the answer Kagome needed.

"So… why don't you?"

"Buchou doesn't play serious personal matches. Especially since we have official matches every three days or so."

Kagome wasn't fazed. "Ask him for a tennis date, I'm sure he'll agree."

"A… date?"

Kagome nodded. "Yea."

"A date," Ryoma repeated flatly, giving her the familiar are-you-stupid look.

"Look," Kagome said, pointing a finger at his short pockets holding his cellphone. "The call and text exchanges between the two of you aren't what one would all "average". You guys are already dating material."

Her words made Ryoma scowl harder. "I told you that's—"

She held up a hand to stop him. "Ambush him! Tell him beforehand that his silence means yes and ask him on a tennis date. You'll shock him into silence with your question and you'll have your tennis date and I'll have my… uh… lab rat."

"Or you could just have another physics assignment."

"Yea." Kagome shook her head. "I don't think he's going to fall for that again."

He huffed. "Buchou can't play long anyway."

Kagome blinked. "I'm not asking for a long game."

"If you want Buchou to play seriously… it's usually a long game."

"Oh." Kagome frowned and thought back to the last time she watched an actual tennis match… a couple years ago and it was an old recording of her uncle. Didn't it last a couple hours? She paled. "So, uh, why can't he play long?"

"His arm gives him trouble," Ryoma mumbled.

"Left?" Kagome asked, raising an eyebrow.

Ryoma looked at her. He knew he never brought up the issue with Kagome and when she had watched the practice match between Fuji and Tezuka, he was playing with his right hand so… "How?"

Kagome shrugged. "That time he was playing… that Fuji guy… sometimes when he used both hands to hit the ball, his left one would flare up."

_Flare up? _Ryoma frowned. "It should have healed years ago."

Kagome shook her head. "It doesn't have anything to do with his body's condition. I meant, flare up with demonic energy."

He stared.

"His arm pain is most likely because his demonic energy and his overpowering human aura—and dear gods, he has a strong one!—is battling in his arm for dominance."

Ryoma blinked. And blinked again. "Can you heal it?"

She shook her head. "I could probably do something… but if the energy battle does end up physically hurting him in some way, I wouldn't be able to do anything." She gave her cousin a sad look. "I'm not god, Ryoma. I can't heal physical wounds."

"Can you… purify the demonic energy?"

"See," Kagome said, looking down at her hands. "That's the problem. I _can _purify demon energy. I can purify and cleanse someone who's being possessed which is probably quite similar to what's going on with Tezuka and Momoshiro but I don't know exactly where all that demonic energy is coming from." She sighed. "I know I can purify the demonic energy inside them—Tezuka—but because of the unknown factor, I wouldn't be surprise if I end up purifying Tezuka's arm right off."

Ryoma's mouth opened slightly in horror at the mental image.

"And no," Kagome emphasized. "I am not joking."

Ryoma closed his eyes, giving himself a moment to recover before snapping them back open again. "Could you… check?"

Kagome stared at him. "Why?"

"I want to play tennis with buchou."

**To tell you guys the truth, I actually wanted Ryoma to freak out… but I think it would have been too out of character if he did. So… yea.**


	11. Clear Water

**So… it's been a long time, I apologize but I've been busy—like, really busy—and my Inuyasha / Prince of Tennis faze had faded. But remember, I will never, ever, **_**ever **_**abandon a story so this will be updated sooner or later. Thank you for sticking with me.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha, Prince of Tennis or any of its characters.**

New Beginnings  
>[11] Clear Water<p>

"Kagome!" Sango squealed as she ran up to her friend and pulled her into a tight hug.

The priestess groaned. "Sango. It's too early of a Monday morning to do this." Ryoma made a small noise of agreement. He could never get how people could be so touchy-touchy with each other. Sango would be good friends with Momo-senpai and Kikumaru-senpai.

"I have something to show you," Sango whispered, ignoring Kagome.

Kagome blinked. "Didn't you get my text—"

_From my phone, _Ryoma thought, almost bitterly. His cousin really needed to get her own phone.

Sango's brown eyes flickered towards the tennis prodigy and then back at Kagome. "Well… yes, but…"

"It's fine," Kagome insisted.

"If you say so…" Sango muttered quietly. She swung her bag over her shoulder again, hugging it tight to her chest as she searched through it. "Well, you know how we were talking about Kagome-chan and Kagome-sama and how Kagome-chan was a figment of our imagination so we could actually find you in the future?"

She winced. "Yes…" Kagome didn't think she will ever be able to get used to hearing someone talk about her like that. Talk about weird.

"Well," Sango continued, pulling out an envelope. "It turns out Kagome-chan isn't a figment of our imagination, after all."

The priestess swallowed hard and wondered if she would ever be able to get past a day in her life without fate throwing some sort of curveball at her. With trembling fingers, Kagome reached out and took the crisp, white envelope. Ryoma leaned in as she opened it and slid out a smooth white paper. She frowned and then turned the photo over.

Sango felt a wide grin spread across her lips as she watched Ryoma's eyebrows shot upwards. What was even funnier was the fact that Kagome's eyes were comically wide with shock and her mouth had dropped open. She waited a second. And another. Kagome squeaked, throwing the envelope and photo as far away from her as she could. It fluttered down innocently in front of her and Ryoma's hand snapped out and caught it easily.

"_Oh my god!"_ Kagome squealed. "Tell me I'm hallucinating!"

Ryoma brought the photo closer up to his face. He traced a thumb over Kagome's familiar six-year-old face, taking in her happy, blushing face. While her expression was not unusual (Kagome was always easily flustered), what _did _surprise Ryoma was that she was kissing someone on the cheek. The hair color narrowed it down to two people but the eye color, amber made only one person come up in mind: "Is that Sesshomaru?"

Kagome squeaked upon hearing the name. "Don't say that!"

He squinted. "That _is _Sesshomaru."

Sango chuckled. "Just friends, huh?"

"It _never _happened!" Kagome retorted quickly. She made a grab for the picture but Ryoma held it just out of her reach. "Give that to me," she said. "_Now!"_

Ryoma smiled, he couldn't help it. "Don't you want Sesshomaru to see?"

"Are you trying to get me killed?" she asked, grabbing his arm and pushing forth as much purification energy as she could. Since Ryoma had his own faint set of purification energy, her powers did not harm him. However, the amount that she did shot up into his arm was enough to numb it and he dropped the photo in shock.

"Ow," he mumbled. He rubbed his arm and wished that he never asked Kagome to tell him about her adventures.

"This stays between us," Kagome muttered darkly, looking back down at the photo with a blush.

Sango giggled. "I didn't bring that photo just to tease you." _Lies. _"I just wanted to show you that we have physical evidence of the existence of Kagome-chan and… uh… Sesshomaru. Uh, future Sesshomaru." She wrinkled her nose in thought. "Sesshomaru-chan?" she muttered hesitantly and then shuddered. "Future Sesshomaru."

"Don't you have any other photos?" Kagome asked.

Sango blinked and then shook her head. "Nope. Sorry. The others were burned in a fire."

Kagome narrowed her eyes. "How convenient."

"I know, right?" Sango thought about the photos sitting on her desk and wondered if she should set them on fire just to make her words true. She smiled slightly, to herself and decided that it would be fine since Kagome wouldn't figure it out. Besides, it was fun teasing the younger girl, gets her back for all the time she teased her about Miroku.

"Yo! Echizen!" Momoshiro called out as he jogged up to them before Kagome could call Sango out about her obvious lie.

Kagome smiled tightly at the taller male, her thoughts instantly flashing towards Hojo—poor, poor Hojo. "Hello, Momoshiro-san."

"Oh! Hello Higurashi-san—"

Ryoma narrowed his eyes. _If he says—_

"—What a surprise. I didn't see you!"

_I'm going to kill him._

Sango nodded her greeting with a smile as Kagome giggled nervously. "You guys don't have tennis practice?" she asked.

Momoshiro shook his head. "Nah, we don't have morning practice on Mondays."

"Oh."

Awkward silence.

Momoshiro turned his attention towards Ryoma and grinned. "So… you fell asleep yesterday! And you said you weren't tired!"

Ryoma raised his eyebrows. "You all left, didn't you?"

He blinked. "Eh?" And then he understood. "Why you cheeky brat!"

They continued arguing until the bell rang, singling that classes were about to begin. Ryoma huffed, turning his face away from his senpai and glared at the ground.

"Well," Kagome said awkwardly, sure that they weren't just arguing about Ryoma pretending to fall asleep. "I'll see you guys later." She waved slightly, wiggling her fingers at her cousin and turned around to leave only to be stopped with Ryoma's thin fingers wrapped around her wrist—

"Ryoma, what—"

—and pulled her into her hug.

Kgaome blinked. And blinked. And again. "Um."

He hummed against her ear and slipped out of her arms. "Have a good day," he said flatly as if nothing had happened and walked away.

Kagome stared. She turned towards Sango. "What was that?"

The older woman shrugged. "I don't know. He's not my cousin."

Kagome frowned and looked back at Ryoma again.

Sango eyed her unzipped backpack and blinked. _Ooh, that boy is good!_

* * *

><p>Sesshomaru's phone beeped in the middle of one of his business meetings and he glared at the directors as if it was their fault. But really, he was silently daring them to speak up and tell him that he can't answer his own phone in his own company. He flipped it open—he still had a flip phone because he liked snapping it shut whenever he felt like hanging up on his half-brother. Smart phones just lacked taste—and read the message.<p>

_From: Echizen Ryoma_

_07:03_

_I have something you might want to see._

Sesshomaru wondered if both cousins thought that his time was made up of an Echizen and a Higurashi. He had a life, thank you very much. He can't just show up whenever the cousins feel like having him.

…_something you might want to see. _

Although, it _was_ a message from Echizen which meant that Sesshomaru most likely did what to see whatever he had. Echizen wasn't the type of person to say things just to say them. He wondered if his schedule had an open spot.

Ryoma received seven texts later that afternoon when he checked his phone after practice. Four of them were from Buchou, his own personal alarm clock since he fell asleep after school and was late for practice. One was from Fuji-senpai and it was just a smiley face. Ryoma wondered how he got his number in the first place and the last two were from Sesshomaru.

_From: Sponsor 7 – Sessho…_

_5:24 PM_

_I will be at your school in five minutes. Do not leave. _

And:

_From: Sponsor 7- Sessho…_

_5:24 PM_

_I will be greatly displeased if you do._

Ryoma stared at his phone, frowned as he trailed his fingers over the smooth white envelope again. Why did the man find the need to visit when he was still in school? Does he not know where he lives? He sighed; at least there will be fewer people hanging about since Sesshomaru's visit this time is rather spontaneous.

Eyes sliding to the left hand corner of his phone, Ryoma winced at the time, five twenty-eight. He didn't have time to change. Before Kagome, Ryoma had only met Sesshomaru three times as his sponsor—_The real Sesshomaru, _his mind reminded him—and the older man had arrived always exactly on time to meetings, not a minute earlier or later. If Sesshomaru said that he was going to arrive in five minutes, one better believe that he _is _going to arrive in five minutes.

"What's that in your hands?" Fuji asked, as Ryoma stuffed his clothes into his bag.

"Revenge," Ryoma answered. He could still feel the ghost of a tingle from Kagome's powers earlier.

Tezuka looked up from buttoning his shirt.

"Eh?" Oishi exclaimed. "Revenge? Who's?"

Ryoma remained silent, refusing to answer as he brushed his hair out of his eyes and shoved his cap back where it belonged. He double-checked to make sure that he had everything before leaving the changing room. His senpai-tachi, of course, followed him, hoping to satisfy their growing curiosity. Ryoma resisted another frown.

He checked his phone again. Five twenty-nine and was not surprised to see Sesshomaru making his way towards the center of the tennis courts. Practice had been surprisingly hard today and once again, he saw a black-haired Sesshomaru. He narrowed his eyes, and almost blinked in surprise as the older man's image seemed to wobble.

"Heeh."

Kagome, who had been waiting for him, blinked in surprise. "Eh? Sesshomaru-sama! What are you doing here?" She walked up to him.

Sesshomaru's cold eyes—no matter the color—flickered towards her and then towards Ryoma. "Your cousin called me."

"Ryoma?" Kagome asked, her voice soft in confusion. She blinked. Then paled. "No!" she whispered and the scrambled back to her previous spot. She unzipped her bag, ruffling through it trying to find the envelope. _Oh please, oh please, oh please! It was in here this morning! There's no way—_she paused, remembering the unusual hug that Ryoma had given her that same morning.

"Ryoma!" _I'm going to kill you!_

She whipped around again, hoping to do some damage control but it was too late. Ryoma was already in front of Sesshomaru, holding out the envelope containing her free pass to hell. She watched in horror as Sesshomaru reached for it, slowly, as if teasing her. Either that or she was going through some serious panic attack.

"No, wait!" Kagome squeaked and raced towards him again only to stop when he glanced at her.

_Oh dear gods, _she thought as he slipped the photo out of the envelope and looked at it.

He narrowed his eyes.

Silence

"Just some physical evidence, it's not as mental as we all had thought," Sango said helpfully, rubbing small circles on Kagome's back.

"I see…" Sesshomaru said slowly.

Silence.

"Is something wrong?" Miroku asked, holding back a laugh.

Kagome wanted to punch someone.

Sesshomaru stayed silent still. Then: "The resemblance is uncanny."

Kagome felt her stomach drop. She prepared herself for the inevitable.

"Although… it lacks my markings."

_Why me? _she questioned the fates. _Just get it over with and kill me now._

Then Sesshomaru's eyes narrowed further, as if in anger and he looked back up at Ryoma. "Who is the girl?"

Kagome's eyes widened and she thanked whatever deity was still in her favor. "No clue," she squeaked out, hands wrapping around Ryoma's arm again. She squeezed, her nails digging into the older man's skin.

Ryoma winced.

"Possibly an old… girlfriend?" Miroku asked, innocently.

Kagome turned and glared. Forget punching someone, she was going to reach out and strangle the pervert no matter how many witnesses there are. Sango will get over the fact that her lover—lover from a previous life, since Kagome had no clue what was going on between her two friends at the moment—was strangled right in front of her. Her fingers tightened, knowing that even though Miroku, Ryoma, and hell, even Sango deserved to be strangled, it would be too much of a giveaway to Sesshomaru.

And if he finds out, she'll really die. No questions, no hesitations, nothing. She'll just die. Painfully.

Sesshomaru frowned at the photo and looked at Ryoma. "This was what you wanted to show me?" he asked and couldn't believe how much time he wasted on the younger boy.

Ryoma's eyes flickered noticeably towards his cousin.

Realization dawned. Sesshomaru raised an eyebrow.

Ryoma blinked in response.

Sesshomaru looked back down at the photo and then up towards the priestess. He could see the resemblance. He looked at her grip on the young tennis player's arm and snorted softly. _Foolish priestess, _he thought. In another life he might have killed her for invading his—or rather, not his—personal space but it wasn't the priestess's fault. Not to mention, the girl in the photo was not actually the priestess and the Sesshomaru in the same photo certainly wasn't him.

He sighed and turned his attention back towards her. "Have you calmed?"

Kagome blinked. "Er… yes?"

Sesshomaru frowned, obviously not believing her.

"Is there another surprise for me?" Kagome asked. _What's next? _she wondered. _Naraku's alive and you're best friends with him? You guys dance together? Inuyasha's actually gay? Fucking hell, just tell me and get it over with already._

The demon lord sighed and turned around to walk away, not even bothering answering her question.

"Hey! Sesshomaru!" Kagome called out after him. "Sesshomaru! Wait! May I have the photo back?"

Sesshomaru felt a smirk. He gave himself a moment to smooth his expression before turning back towards her. "No," he answered. "I plan on tracking down the girl in this photograph and killing her." He was rewarded as the young priestess paled at his words. He nodded towards Ryoma, "Tell me if you remember her." With that said, he walked away from them, leaving silence in his wake.

Kagome waited until she knew Sesshomaru was well out of hearing range. "I can't believe you!" she yelled. "Why would you do that?"

Ryoma held up a finger. "Keeping secrets from me." Another finger. "Not calling once you started your adventures." Another. "Forcing me to play with my right hand today."

She looked ready to burst into tears. "You. Almost. Got. Me. Killed."

"I wouldn't have allowed it."

Kagome stared at him. "Yea," she said, casually throwing an arm over Ryoma's shoulders. "I don't think I told you about my old meetings with Sesshomaru in enough detail."

"I don't think I want to know the details," Ryoma muttered under his breath.

Kagome froze in her spot. "D-did you just—" She sputtered, unable to find the right words to express what Ryoma had just implied. "I can't—" She narrowed her eyes, she couldn't believe that Ryoma had the guts to tease her about it. And called Sesshomaru so he could tease her in front of him! Ooh! She was going to _kill_ him.

"It's alright, Lady Kagome," Miroku cut in happily. "Lord Sesshomaru doesn't know." The twinkle in his eyes implied that yes, he knew that Sesshomaru knew.

Kagome frowned and huffed. "You're walking home alone," she said, turning her nose into the air.

Ryoma raised his eyebrows almost mockingly.

Seeing her cousin's expression, or lack thereof, Kagome huffed and stomped away from him. She stopped in front of Tezuka. "By the way," she said, "Ryoma wants to talk to you… _buchou._" She turned her head towards Ryoma again, a smirk playing across her lips. "_That's right," _she mouthed, also wanting to add something along the lines of: _"Eat shit," _but thought better of it.

Ryoma stared at her. His mouth twitched once but otherwise did not say anything.

"Hmph," Kagome said, and then walked past the confused captain.

"Well," Sango said. "That was awkward."

"Mm," Miroku agreed. "For a second there I almost thought Lady Kagome was going to…" he trailed off.

"Sit him?" guessed Sango.

Miroku hummed in agreement and Ryoma raised his eyebrows at the familiar words. "What does that mean?"

Sango turned and blinked at him in surprise. She frowned, wondering if she _should _tell him but then reminded herself that Kagome had allowed Ryoma to know everything. Another detail couldn't hurt. "Well, when Kagome says "sit", Inuyasha is… um… forced to… uh—"

"Sit?"

Miroku chuckled. "Imagine if you have the power to forcefully make someone sit down without touching them."

Ryoma blinked.

"And then multiply that force by a thousand."

He stared.

"That's Kagome-sama's angry sitting-Inuyasha technique."

Ryoma didn't get it but Inuyasha was a _dog _demon wasn't he? The irony of the word made Ryoma smile slightly.

"Why is it," Sango began, "that I've only ever seen you smile when someone's suffering in some way or another?"

He stared at her for a couple moments before deciding that her question wasn't worthy of getting an answer out of him. Besides, he had to force Momo-senpai to give him a ride home today. He might as well catch him before his senpai left since his cousin wasn't around today.

Ryoma didn't get far.

"Echizen."

He almost winced at the tone. Slowly, Ryoma forced himself to turn around to face Tezuka. He raised his eyebrows in question even though he already knew why Tezuka had stopped him. He was going to kill his cousin.

When Kagome agreed that she would take a look at Tezuka's arm issues, it was given that there wasn't any way that they could let the older man know that Kagome was a priestess and that a possible reason why his arm was hurting so much was because of some demonic energy and whatnot. So, Kagome had left it up to Ryoma to make something up where her examining Tezuka's arm without giving away everything.

He was completely fine with talking to Tezuka about it.

He could do it.

But damn it, Kagome! At least give him a few days to think of an excuse.

"You wanted to talk to me about something?" Tezuka asked after glaring at lingering Regulars and sending them off on their way.

_Including Momo-senpai, _Ryoma thought bitterly. Well, there goes his ride home.

He turned his attention back towards his captain and pretended to ponder his question. Then a thought struck him and Ryoma actually had to dig his nails into his palm to prevent a smirk from stretching his lips. "Actually," he began, and couldn't believe that he was actually going to do this. He almost felt guilty but then reminded himself that Kagome started it—actually, he did but really, that's all perspective—and that she'll find a way to get back at him one way or another. "Kagome's actually very shy."

Tezuka blinked.

"But she really wants to learn tennis and wants to observe some of your tennis moves, buchou." He paused but Tezuka didn't respond. "So I'm here to ask if you'll teach her."

_Higurashi-san_, Tezuka thought. _Is anything _but _shy. _Hanging out with both Echizen and Higurashi for a while would leave no doubt in anyone's mind that the two of them were related. Besides the fact that they were both prodigies in what they did and a few shared physical appearances, the fact that the word _shy_ was,is, and will _never _be in their vocabulary was also another similarity. Higurashi may appear shy at first but she will not hesitate to get up in front of someone's face and speak her mind.

He almost winced at the reminder.

Despite being a first year, Higurashi shared an elective class with him: _Mythology_ and had showed exactly how not shy she really was when she was being mercilessly teased by one of her classmates.

"_You do know that this class really is meant for seniors, correct?" Shino Nemu asked, pulling Higurashi's sleeve for attention._

_Tezuka's mouth twitched but he continued to ignore them. It wasn't his business and he really shouldn't be involved._

"_Or are you just trying to take easy classes to jumpstart your grade?" Shino continued ruthlessly._

_He could see a muscle in Higurashi's jaw twitch and had to give her props for not killing the girl. _

"_Shouldn't _you _be the one not taking easy classes since you're a 3__rd__ year? Aren't you supposed to be working hard and all that and look into colleges?" she asked, cold blue eyes flickering towards the older girl._

"_You're such a bitch," Shino hissed. "Don't talk to your seniors like that!" _

_Tezuka's eyes widened in horror as she let go of Higurashi's sleeve and gave her hair a yank. He stood up, ready to pull Higurashi away from the situation and perhaps give Shino a stern talking to since if there was anything he hated, it was seniors abusing their power._

_But before he reached the two girls, Higurashi stood up, throwing back her chair loudly._

_Tezuka froze._

"_Is there a reason why you're purposely trying to piss me off?"_

_Tezuka blinked. Her voice… where had he heard that tone before? _

"_What's with the attitude?" Shino asked harshly, standing up as well. All around them, students were gathering, wanting to witness the beginnings of what seemed to be a fight._

"_Look," Higurashi growled out. "If this is about Miroku, you can back the hell up," she hissed. "You are not even Miroku's girlfriend."_

"_I'm defending my friend!"_

_Higurashi smiled sweetly, which probably would have made her quite pretty, Tezuka supposed, if he didn't find it downright frightening. "Look," she said, in a sugary-sweet voice. "I don't want to start a fight. So just stay away from me and I'll stay away from you._

"_Miroku is my friend. He will always remain my friend. And if he gets married to that girlfriend of his—which he won't—he will still be my friend. If you force him to choose between his girlfriend and me, he will choose me for reasons you do not and will never understand." Her smile widened at this point and Tezuka swore as did her aura which was similar to his own killer aura when he wanted to scare idiotic opponents during a tennis match. But hers… hers seemed as if they were meant for enemies and not opponents._

"_Do not attempt to push us away from him," Higurashi continued, "or him away from us." And: "Or I will make you regret you were every born." Her eyes flashed, a brilliant blue going almost hard silver steel in color. "Are we clear?"_

_Tezuka could see Shino shudder slightly. "You think you're so scary—"_

_She cut herself off and Tezuka turned back towards Higurashi, clenching his jaw tight as he took in her eyes again. He has seen that look before: Back when she was shooting arrows at the target. He couldn't help his own shudder despite the fact that her glare was not directed towards him._

"Buchou?"

Tezuka's head snapped up, closing his eyes and willed the memory away, feeling almost embarrassed. Had he always lacked this much concentration during a conversation? "Aa," he muttered.

Echizen leaned closer and squinted. "Is that a yes?"

"Aa," He blinked. What was he agreeing to again?

Echizen smirked. "We'll go Friday then," he said. "Kagome and I can give you a ride."

Tezuka nodded and wondered again what he just agreed to.


	12. Summer Breeze

**I apologize beforehand for the shortness of this chapter. It was definitely longer in my head.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha, Prince of Tennis or any of its characters.**

New Beginnings  
>(12) Summer Breeze<p>

"I think you scare buchou," Ryoma said.

Kagome choked on her chicken. "Excuse me?" she asked, wiping her mouth with an expensive-looking napkin.

Ryoma shrugged. "When I bring up your name he gets a really distant look on his face." He took a bite of his fish looking as if he was about to add something more.

His cousin frowned, thinking. "Well, I definitely haven't done anything to make him… scared of me." If anything, _she _should be the one scared of him, with his glares and stern voice and just everything about him. Kagome shuddered.

"What about that time you made the target explode?" Miroku asked. "I can't imagine anyone _not _being scared of that."

Sesshomaru looked up then. "You made a target explode?" he asked, speaking up for the first time since they had started dinner. The group was currently having dinner at his house. It was Sango's idea. Rather strange if Ryoma thought about it but his mother had insisted on a western dinner for tonight so Ryoma wasn't complaining.

"It was an accident!" Kagome whined.

The demon snorted. "Five hundred years ago, an accident would have gotten you killed."

"Ha!" Kagome exclaimed, pointing an accusing finger at him. Sango gave it a look, only she would be able to get away with doing that to Sesshomaru. "Five hundred years ago I pulled Tessaiga out. _On accident! _And guess who's not dead and who got _his arm cut off?_"

Sesshomaru narrowed his eyes dangerously.

"That's right," she continued proudly. "And—"

"You also tripped on a rock and killed Naraku," Sango added.

Kagome flushed, that was not something she had been proud of despite the positive outcome. "I did _not _trip on a rock," she mumbled turning a nose into the air. "I was graceful."

"Indeed," Sesshomaru agreed. "Incredibly graceful when looking for the shards." He paused. "Less than graceful upon shooting your final arrow."

Miroku and Sango laughed at the memory and Kagome felt her flush deepened. Ryoma raised his eyebrows at his sponsor. "Why were you watching her?" he asked before he could stop himself. He frowned at the thought, he never stopped himself; he does what he wanted. And then he caught the sight of amber eyes and reminded himself that this _was _Sesshomaru.

Immediately the care-free atmosphere around the group completely vanished, leaving a tense, electrifying air in its wake. Out of the corner of his eyes he could see Kagome's two friends paling and glancing at the demon worryingly. Ryoma almost smirked at a job well done especially after seeing the expression on his cousin's face.

Miroku was the first to recover: "Hmm…" He hummed, tapping his chin gleefully. "What an interesting interpretation."

Sesshomaru's fingers twitched slightly and he narrowed his eyes. Five hundred years ago he would have killed them all on the spot. "You don't know your cousin as well as you claim you do, boy." He slanted his gaze towards the priestess. "If one does not keep an eye on her during battle, they will find themselves the unintended target of the end of one of her arrows."

"That's not—" Kagome squeaked.

Ryoma blinked. "Okay," he said slowly and most pointedly did not look in Kagome's direction. He knew that he didn't sound convincing enough, especially when Kagome knew him as well as she does. Then again, he wasn't _trying _to sound convincing; he was doing his upmost best to let the older man know that Echizen Ryoma did not believe a word he just said.

"Enough of this," Sesshomaru interrupted anyone could say anything else. Ryoma had a feeling that the he was uncomfortable with the direction of the conversation. "What is it that you plan on doing to the…" he looked over in Ryoma's direction. "…tennis captain of yours?"

Ryoma thought and then shrugged; too many words, he might as well have Kagome explain it.

"As of right now," Kagome began, swallowing her bite before continuing, "I actually don't plan on doing anything. I want to observe him first and see if I can get rid of it."

Miroku's eyebrows shot up. "Get rid of it? What happens if you purify his arm off?"

Once again, the young tennis prodigy winced at the mental image.

"Which is why I plan on _observing _him first."

Ryoma almost panicked. Buchou unable to play well due to whatever the hell is going on with his left arm was okay. Buchou unable to play _at all _due to the fact that his left arm was _nonexistence _was another story altogether. "Have you… purified an arm before?"

His cousin and her two friends—what were their names again?—all turned and blinked at his question and then turned and stared at the demon lord, sitting and eating and all in all, looking very nonchalant. Kagome giggled nervously, making Ryoma turn his attention back towards her. "Well, I didn't exactly purified demonic energy in a human's limb before but I've done something… similar… so, well, uh…" She bit her lips. "Anyway, it ended up fine."

"She almost purified my arm off," Sesshomaru pointed out calmly. "Again."

Kagome stood up, pushing her chair back forcefully. "I _did not!"_ she exploded.

"Of course, then am I to presume that the one time I attempted to save you, your reaction was not actually you attempting to purify my arm?"

"I thought you were trying to kill me!" she protested. And really, no one could really blame her for thinking such a thing. "That's also _completely _different! Ryoma's asking if I've ever purified someone's arm while attempting to heal them!" She yanked her chair back and sat down hard. Ryoma could almost hear the crunch of bone. "When I purified the poison in your arm that one time, it ended up _fine!"_

Sango shook her head and sighed. Kagome was just digger herself a deeper hole. "Fine?" he repeated. "You fail to mention the part when my demonic strips disappeared and the tips of my claws faded into dust."

Ryoma's eyes went wide.

"But I didn't completely purify your arm, now did I?"

"Only because Lord Sesshomaru almost introduced her internal organs to the ground," Miroku whispered.

"If Inuyasha hadn't gotten between them," Sango agreed.

"Which he probably shouldn't have done since it ended up with the introduction of _his _internal organs to the ground," Tatsuki muttered softly, clicking his tongue against the roof of his mouth.

Everyone froze and stared. He blinked, winced, bit his lips and stared back. Ryoma, who really had no idea what was going on just took another bite of the fish.

Kagome stared—once again—into green, green eyes and then all of sudden, everything clicked.

She exploded.

* * *

><p>"How was dinner?" Nanjirou asked, waggling his eyebrows suggestively because he had seen the girl that was in the same car Ryoma and Kagome had climbed into hours earlier and damn, her ass was—<p>

"Kagome's scary," he replied flatly as he walked by.

"Eh?" He looked around, expecting but not seeing his young niece following his son. "Hey brat! Where's my precious Kagome-chan?"

"She's staying over at Sesshomaru's."

_"Eh? _Already?" He rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "Damn, she works fast! Or should I say _he _works fast. I mean, Kagome-chan got her good looks from _my _side of the family"—Ryoma rolled his eyes at this and wondered if his father forgotten that he wasn't related to Kagome by blood—"so _of course _with her killer body, especially her—"

Ryoma tuned him out after that, not wanting to hear anything about "killer body" since she was, after all, his cousin. And really, he still remembers when they used to take baths together and they was like _five _or something. What in the world made his father think it was okay telling his son these things? About his _cousin_ no less. Then again, he was pretty sure his father would not hesitate to marry Kagome despite everything once given the chance. He was weird like that.

Speaking of his cousin… Ryoma frowned as he sat down onto his bed. He hasn't seen Kagome this angry for a very, very long time. The last time was… over the phone, if he remembered correctly. Something about a guy torturing some girl and how she was never going to forgive the guy or something like that. The only reason he had even the briefest memory of that was because he remembered being shocked at Kagome's tone of voice.

He frowned, trying to remember. Actually, with that tone of voice he knew now that Kagome might have been talking about some situation in the federal era. She must have just been modernizing it for him.

Ryoma sighed. His life had been so much easier before Kagome.

* * *

><p>If there was anything Kagome was good at, it was tripping. She had tripped so many times in her lifetime, her body knew what to do and she could trip accidently on purpose and no one would be any wiser. She smiled brightly at Ryoma who narrowed his eyes in suspicion. And the moment, Kagome was just about to pass by Tezuka in the halls, she tripped (accidently on purpose) falling forward and hoped that despite appearances, Tezuka <em>is <em>a gentlemen and will catch her.

He did.

Unfortunately, just not the way she was expecting to be caught. His arms wrapped around her middle, his hand pressing hard against her chest. Kagome automatically shrieked, twisting her body and slammed a fist into the older man sending them both falling towards the ground.

_This was not how I envisioned this going._

Tezuka rubbed his stomach, wincing. He could already feel the bruise forming; Higurashi-san had a lot more power than she let on.

"What are you doing?" Ryoma asked wanting very much to hit his head against the nearest wall.

Kagome looked up; face still flushed and arms wrapped around her chest in embarrassment. _"I tripped!"_ she squeaked out. "It was an accident! I promise." She turned towards Tezuka and watched as he got up and held out a hand to her. She stared at it almost fearfully. "No thank you! I got this!" She immediately shot up and dusted herself off.

Awkward silence.

"Well," she chirped. "I guess I'll see you guys later!" And with that said, she power-walked her way past the two tennis players.

"I think Kagome might have been distracted," Ryoma heard Sango whisper as she followed his cousin at a slower pace. "Did you get a good look at his arm?"

"I saw his hand," Miroku replied, waggling his eyebrows suggestively in a way that made Sango uncomfortable especially since his free hand was slowly inching its way towards her. She wrapped two fingers around his ears and yanked, earning a yelp from the older man. For the first time since remembering her past life, she sincerely missed her boomerang which was still taking resident in Sesshomaru's house.

Ryoma blinked and then turned and stared at Tezuka. "Hm." His gaze dropped to his left arm. He had… powers after all; he realized and then wondered if _he _would see anything.

Tezuka shifted uncomfortably underneath Echizen's gaze. He appeared to be lost in thought, his gaze calculating. Tezuka wondered if this was what Echizen's opponents felt when Echizen decided enough was enough and maybe a _Twist Serve _to the face would make them see sense. He felt his arm throb. His pressed his right hand against his left shoulder blade, gripping it hard and feeling it pulse against him.

If he didn't know better, he would think that his shoulder was throbbing in response to Echizen.

"Don't be late for practice," he murmured softly and then walked away. He didn't look back. There was something about Echizen, he had noticed but this is the first time he had ever consciously thought it. Ever since Higurashi came, Echizen had been acting stranger and stranger. He thought he knew the younger boy and that all that mattered to him was sleeping, Ponta and tennis. It appeared, he thought almost regretfully that there were secrets that Echizen was hiding. And he couldn't believe that he actually felt uncomfortable in the younger boy's presence.

With every step he took away from Echizen, Tezuka felt the throb in his shoulder lessened until it completely faded away.

He narrowed his eyes. Thoughts of Echizen, his arm and Higurashi plagued his mind throughout the day. In fact, he was so lost in thought that he was pretty sure that his math teacher's glanced worriedly in his direction more than once when he didn't stand up to correct the problems. He wanted to sigh, he could feel his fingers twitch; if anything could to take his mind off the current problem it would be tennis.

Entering his first class, he nodded a greeting at Oishi.

"Tezuka."

"I need an appointment with your uncle."

Oishi immediately paled at Tezuka's words. "Your… shoulder's bothering you again?"

He didn't answer the question especially since the answer was so obvious. Ignoring Oishi's worried look, Tezuka took his usual seat and took out his notebook for the class. His shoulder wasn't _really _bothering him, it was only during long, serious matches that it acted up. His fingers curled into a fist and he wondered if he should go back to the specialized health center to get it checked up on again. He needed his shoulder healed. Completely.

Otherwise, how would he be able to continue to play tennis?

The door to the classroom slid open forcefully with a loud _clank, _making Tezuka look up at Higurashi. She looked flushed, large blue eyes flickering embarrassingly around the classroom at the ruckus she caused. "Sorry," she murmured. "I thought I was going to be late…"

Everyone turned back to what they were doing and Higurashi slowly made her way towards her seat, located next to him and sank down. He felt her gaze flickered in his direction and eyed her the moment she flushed and looked away.

Tezuka cleared his throat. "I apologize about earlier, Higurashi-san."

"It was my fault," she mumbled, embarrassed. She looked over in his direction again; face flushing in a way that made her look—his lips pursed at the thought. "Is your stomach okay?"

He remembered her punch and forced himself not to wince. "I will be fine."

Her blush intensified. "I'm _really _sorry about that. You just—you surprised me."

"Yes." He nodded his understanding.

Higurashi sighed. "Well… I'm still really sorry."

Tezuka frowned wondering how many times and how many ways he'll have to say it in order for her to understand. "I am fine," he pressed. "The bruise will be healed within a week."

Her eyes snapped upwards towards him and he almost drew back in surprise. "There's a bruise?" she asked, her voice oddly demanding.

He blinked.

Her gaze dropped downwards towards his stomach. "A bruise," she repeated, her eyes wide.

Higurashi-san, Tezuka noticed—not for the first time, was a frightening woman. She did not know her own strength and he had to remind himself—again—to not make her angry. She really was much more than she seemed. "I am fine," he repeated.

"Yes, yes," she mumbled, distantly. "I guess I'll see you Friday, then."

He blinked.

Friday… he agreed to do something with Echizen Friday. What was it again? He frowned, he couldn't, for the life of him, remembered what he agreed to at all.

Well, damn.


	13. Devil's End

**Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha, Prince of Tennis or any of its characters.**

New Beginnings  
>[13] Devil's End<p>

The week flew by and despite his best efforts Tezuka could not get himself to recall what he had agreed to do. Of course, he could have asked Echizen but that would require him revealing the fact that he hadn't been listening in the first place.

He sighed and looked out the window, ignoring the fact that this was just about the most awkward car ride he had ever been in. Higurashi-san was sitting up front, but he noticed her glancing at the rear mirror to look at him every now and then. He wondered if Monday morning was still fresh on her mind. Her two friends were sitting across from him, whispering in low voices and Echizen himself was staring out the window, bored. Sometimes, he wished he had Echizen's care-free attitude.

His stomach churned as they pulled up in front of the… _palace, _for the lack of a better word. Tezuka wondered if he was nervous. He gave it a thought, he probably was since he really had no idea what he had agreed to.

"Okay, okay," Higurashi called out cheerfully. "We're here!"

She climbed out of the car before the driver had the chance to completely stop the car, much less get out and open the door for her.

"Kagome," he more than whined, much to Tezuka's surprise. "At least let me do my job."

She ignored him. "Come on…" she paused wondering what to call the older man.

"Buchou," Echizen said, climbing out of the car.

Tezuka followed.

"Well," he heard Higurashi whisper to one of her two friends. "We know who's in charge of _that _relationship."

He froze.

Echizen turned slowly, facing his cousin with a blank expression. Tezuka would have winced internally if it was anyone else. But Higurashi _is _Echizen's cousin and they are both so stubborn. He might have been able to turn everyone away with a cool, bored glare but Higurashi was scary in her own right.

"Now, now," one of Higurashi's friend said, stepping between the two cousins. "We all know that Kagome let's her mouth get away from her sometimes. Let's just move on and leave such words behind us, eh?"

Higurashi grinned at her cousin behind her friend's protective back.

Tezuka blinked in shock as Echizen shrugged. "It's not like we don't know who's in charge of your relationship with Sesshomaru."

The effect was immediate. "My _what _with _who?" _she shrieked.

Echizen ignored her but Tezuka saw the barest hint of a smirk playing across his lips. "Echizen," he warned softly.

The younger boy looked up him innocently. He huffed, "Kagome's just kidding. She doesn't really think we're in a relationship."

Tezuka wasn't sure what to think about that. "Ah."

The driver walked ahead of them and pushed a set of large, heavy double doors opened, and waved them in. Tezuka felt his fingers tightened around the strap of his tennis bag, anticipating… something.

"You're late."

He looked up and saw the Wakagami-san. He swallowed hard. He had Fuji tell him that his voice was cold and flat but it was nothing compared to the man in front of him.

Higurashi was not fazed despite the fact that she had seemed utterly frightened of him days before. "Sorry," she said, sarcastically. "We were stuck in traffic."

"Hn."

"Shall we get started?" one of Higurashi's friend asked.

"Hn."

Silence.

"Buchou?"

Tezuka snapped his head towards him in shock realizing that he was supposed to do _something. _Damn it all! He really should have asked Echizen when he had the chance.

"You don't have to be worried," Higurashi said softly. "Despite appearances, I'm a good doctor."

He blinked. "Doctor?"

"I asked for him to show you tennis moves," Echizen said, glaring at his cousin.

She glared back. "I thought we agreed on me being a doctor."

They glared at each other with Tezuka standing uncomfortably in the middle.

"This is quite pathetic," Wakagami said. "You two can't agree on a story and it's pretty obvious that he has no clue what's going on. Did you even ask?"

Ryoma redirected his glare. "I did."

Tezuka wondered if he should speak up. After all, it wasn't the younger boy's fault that he hadn't been listening.

"Okay," Higurashi interrupted before anyone else could comment. "Here's the thing: Ryoma said that your arm's been bothering you." Tezuka blinked at her words. "So, since I come from a family of doctors, we thought it wouldn't hurt for me to check it out."

"I see," he answered hesitantly. "And you need me to play… tennis?"

She scratched the back of her neck shyly. "To see your… um, muscles at work… and stuff."

He didn't believe her story but in the end it didn't matter why she wanted to check out his tennis moves so he consented. Unzipping his tennis bag, he pulled out his favorite racked and a set of three tennis balls. He looked around. The dojo was pretty large so space wasn't an issue.

"The zero-shiki serve, buchou," Echizen murmured.

He narrowed his eyes but otherwise appeared as if he had not heard him. Taking a deep breath, he turned to face the opposite wall which appeared to be a good three to four tennis court length away from him and threw the ball in the air. He tensed his muscles in preparation and slammed hard on the ball as the force of gravity pulled it back down.

"Wah!" Higurashi cried out. "Oh my god! Did you see that? It rolled back! _Rolled!"_

He turned and stared.

"His arm, priestess, his arm."

She blushed at the reminder. "Oh, heh, um, oops?"

Tezuka almost smiled in amusement but caught himself in time. He turned around again and pulled another ball out of his pocket. His muscles tensed and he ignored the painful throb as he threw the ball into the air.

"Eyes front," he heard Wakagami said.

"I _know," _she insisted as he hit the ball.

He clenched his teeth together as the pain flared up around his arm making it feel as if every single nerve in his left arm was on fire.

Silence.

"Well?" Echizen asked, eyeing Tezuka's arm almost worriedly.

Higurashi sighed and looked over at Wakagami. "It's like you," she said.

The older man raised an eyebrow.

"You know," she said, waving a hand towards him. "When you're… well, all this. And then you get angry or something and lose control and your energy just _slips _out."

"Is there anything you can do, Kagome?" the other one of her friends asked. Tezuka frowned, he really needed to remember their names because it seemed like they would be hanging out a lot now… not that he knew exactly what was going on.

She sighed. "I don't think so."

Echizen narrowed his eyes. "What do you mean, you don't think so?"

"There's nothing there," she snapped. "Right now, him just standing there, there's absolutely nothing wrong with his arm." Tezuka wondered if they were talking about the yips. "But when he does something, something that requires most of his strength and power, _it _comes out."

"But—"

"What?" she shouted. "I can't _do _anything. And if I can, it has to be when he's playing tennis or something. And if I am to make sure I don't make his arm disappear I need him to be completely still so I can concentrate."

"We can't just leave it," Echizen shot back.

Tezuka wished he knew what they were talking about.

Higurashi looked as if she was ready to burst into tears. "I'm sorry!"

"There, there," her friend said, placing a soothing arm around her shoulder. "Kagome-sama's trying her best, Echizen-san."

"Hmph."

"Kagome gets really emotional if she can't do anything to help," her other friend whispered, leaning closer to him.

Tezuka raised his eyebrow. "I am going to go to a doctor later."

Higurashi turned her attention towards him and eyed his arm sadly.

"Don't bother with false hope, boy. Doctors can do nothing about your arm." Tezuka blinked at Wakagami's words. "At this point, all we can do is wait and see. Presence of it around the world is getting stronger and stronger. If _it _exposes itself and remained exposed, we will move on from there."

Higurashi exploded. "What the hell do you mean, wait and see? I'm so fucking tired of waiting and seeing." She kicked a nearby sword-stand. "Why can't I just have a perfectly normal life?" she screamed, stomping out of the dojo without a backward glance.

Tezuka blinked.

"I'll go talk to her," her friend said softly and ran after Higurashi.

Tezuka blinked again. "Was it something I did?"

Echizen sighed. "I'll go apologize," he murmured, going after the two girls at his own pace.

"Hm," one of Higurashi's friend said thoughtfully. "It's not your fault, Tezuka-sama. Don't worry about it."

He wasn't convinced.

* * *

><p>"I'm so selfish."<p>

"Kagome," Sango said. "You know that's not true."

"After the well sealed itself, I spent my time mourning and sobbing over my lost. You know, that's the reason why I moved here, because home felt nothing like _home _when I couldn't get access to both." She hiccupped, and Ryoma had a suspicion that she was crying on the other side of the door. "I hated everything, you know? I hated how I have to worry about school and Naraku at the same time and—"

"You were fifteen," soothed Sango.

"I _know! _But even back then I still wished I was _normal. _And Naraku was defeated and I got my wish when the well sealed itself but then I just couldn't accept it also meant losing all of you guys!"

"Kagome—"

"And then I wish that I could see you guys again and I do! My wish came true but here I am complaining, _once again—"_

"Kagome—"

"I'm so selfish," she cried, her voice breaking.

Ryoma frowned as he opened the door, snapping both girl's attention towards him. Sango blinked at his presence and hid a smile as she gave Kagome a hug. "I'll be back in the dojo," she whispered, pressing a light kiss on the younger girl's cheek. Slipping away, she flashed Ryoma a smile and made her way out of the bathroom, closing the door behind her.

Kagome stared at her cousin as he took a seat next to her.

Silence. Then:

"I'm sorry."

She blinked in shock, tears and problems forgotten. This was, after all, the first time she has ever heard him apologize and sound like he _meant _it.

Ryoma looked away, embarrassed. "I just… don't want Buchou to—" he cut himself off and frowned.

"If I _could _do something, I _would," _she said softly. "You know that, right?"

He nodded and buried half his face into the crook of his elbow. "So… what are you going to do now?"

She was silent for a moment. "Wait and see, I guess. There's nothing else I _can _do."

Ryoma frowned. That wasn't exactly what he wanted to hear but he didn't say anything, especially not when Kagome was so emotional. She sounded as if she had the entire weight of the world on her shoulders. He pursed his lips in thought, wondering if he should say some soothing words or something

(not that he knows what those were but he could at least hazard a guess or something).

The two of them sat in silence, comfortable with just the presence of each other.

"Oh!" Kagome suddenly cried out as she up straighter. Her bright blue eyes, moist with tears suddenly looked brighter. "I know what to do!" And with that said, Kagome jumped up and ran out the door and back in the direction of the dojo, leaving Ryoma to stare after her wondering what in the world just happened. He blinked, sighed and then got up to follow her.

"We seal it!" Kagome cried out happily as she threw the doors to the dojo open.

Everyone's attention turned and they all stared at the large, heavy double doors that smacked against the wall with a loud thud. Then they looked at the small, young priestess who really had more strength than she should.

She didn't wait for anyone to respond. "Sango! Miroku! Remember Mishiko? And how she sealed Inuyasha up? And how that as long as the seal was on him, every day was like the new moon to him?" She threw a quick glance in Tezuka's direction who hadn't the faintest idea what was going on. "So all we have to do is duplicate the seal until we figure out what to do. That way, in the mean time we don't have to worry about him overusing his arm and having you-know-what take over."

Silence.

"Well…" Miroku began. "I do see your point, Lady Kagome… however…"

"My plan's flawless," she pouted.

"How do you plan to duplicate such a seal?" Sesshomaru's voice cut in, firm and cold like strong glass.

Kagome immediately began wilting and Ryoma watched with interest as she leaned towards one side. He gave her hair a quick yank, pulling her back into the present instead of willowing in his sponsor's cold reality. Kagome recovered and then flashed Sesshomaru a smile. "Well, I was hoping you would help us with that."

Sesshomaru narrowed his eyes.

"I have a plan," she announced. "I just need some materials!"

Although suspicious Sesshomaru nodded his head in consent. "You are positive it will not slowly destroy his arm?"

Kagome gave him a flat glare. "Yes." In her mind: _Well, Inuyasha didn't slowly disappear when Kikyo pinned him to the tree, now did he? _She turned towards Tezuka and gave him a bright, reassuring smile.

Ryoma was the only person who saw him wince.

* * *

><p>"Lady Kagome," Miroku said slowly. "This seal looks strangely familiar."<p>

"Yea," she agreed, carefully carving another character into the small, flat stone. "It's the same one that sealed Inuyasha to the tree."—Tezuka still had no clue what they were talking about.—She blew away the access layer of dust from the carving and held it up for inspection. "What do you think?"

Sesshomaru stared at her. "You plan to recreate the seal that—"

"I toned it down!" A pause. Kagome almost faltered at the flat stare Sesshomaru was giving her. "A lot!"

"Do you think it will work?" Sango asked.

"Yes!" the young priestess said firmly. There was a determined light in her eyes that left no room for argument. "Now… I just channeled my pr—you-know-what into it. But… it's missing something."

"Blood," Sesshomaru answered automatically.

"What?" she replied just as quickly.

"Blood is always the final ingredient of any seal."

For a moment no one moved and then all at once they turned their attention to an extremely uncomfortable tennis captain, who, of course, had no idea what was going. Seal for what? Sealing who to a _tree? _You-know-what? It? What is _it? _He forced himself to swallow hard. "I want to know what's going on," he said in his captain-voice with an added edge.

It was the voice that he inherited from his grandfather. The voice that stopped everyone in their tracks and listen to his words. The voice that rose above all when there was a loud argument. The voice that _demanded _attention. The voice that was currently making Higurashi and her friends shift uncomfortably in their spots, looking everywhere but in his general direction. The voice that was currently having no effect on Wakagami whatsoever.

He felt his eyebrow twitch.

"You will be told," Wakagami said in a voice that puts Tezuka's to shame, "what we deem is appropriate for you to know."

Tezuka held back a wince.

But he knew that the older man was serious. Letting out a slow breath, Tezuka bowed low. "Thank you for your time," he replied, voice calm despite the fact that his innards were in turmoil. "I will take my leave—"

"No!" Higurashi interrupted, stepping between the two men in an attempt to pacify the tension, facing Tezuka. "You can't! Don't you see how worried Ryoma is about your arm?"

Tezuka paused.

"I'm not—" Echizen began.

"Shh!" someone hushed.

Higurashi spun around towards Wakagami. "And would you please stop that?"

"I will not allow anything done on my person if I do not know everything that is going on," Tezuka pointed out.

Higurashi turned her attention back towards him, eyebrows raised and lips pursed in an angry fashion. "Your _person,_" she repeated. "You two should be friends," she muttered darkly, glancing quickly in Sesshomaru's direction before turning back towards him. "Shouldn't the fact that I'm going to make your arm all better good enough?"

He narrowed his eyes. "You said you needed my _blood."_

"Just a little bit," Higurashi assured, smiling prettily. "Like a blood test."

Tezuka was not convinced.

"_Really,"_ Higurashi pressed.

He pressed his lips together in a thin line.

Silence.

"Okay, okay," Higurashi said, giving in. "Look, I'm a priestess."

_Yes, _Tezuka thought. Because Wakagami had called her one more than a few times.

"And your arm's cursed."

Tezuka stared. Then blinked. And then continued staring. "Cursed," he repeated, just to make sure he was hearing her correctly.

She nodded. "I know it sounds stupid but just stick with my me for a moment. The curse is too strong for me to get rid of completely so I can only seal it."

Tezuka stared some more. Then very slowly he turned his gaze towards Echizen who had a hand pressed into his face. He saw the younger boy sighed deeply before looking up and catching his gaze. As if unsure of what to do or say, Echizen shrugged and jerked his head in his cousin's direction.

_Does he _want _me to listen to her? To _believe_ her? _Tezuka wondered.

"Please?" she begged, clasping her hands in front of her. "Just a drop of your blood."

Tezuka felt his gaze flickered towards Echizen again. He sighed. "Fine," he murmured feeling his stomach flip uncomfortably at his own words.

"Great!" Higurashi cried out, clapping her hands together in excitement. She turned towards Sesshomaru with a bright smile. "Where's your first aid kit?"

Wakagami stared at her. "First aid kit," he repeated. "You think I have one?"

Tezuka watched as she flushed at the older man's words. "Uh… do you have a needle at least? Or some other small and pointy objects?"

Wakagami nodded towards the wall. "I have knives and swords." He flashed her a grin that almost made Tezuka step back in fear. "Among other pointy objects."

"That could be taken a number of different ways," Echizen muttered loud enough for everyone in the dojo to hear. He wrinkled his nose in disgust.

Everyone froze.

Kagome turned towards Miroku and glared.

"I don't talk to your cousin, I swear!" Miroku said quickly, backing up and hiding behind Sango. "That was all him! No influence from me whatsoever!"

Sesshomaru sighed, diverting Kagome's attention from Miroku making him sigh with relief. Sango's lips twitched in amusement and she had to force down a giggle lest she disrupt the rather tense atmosphere.

Giving Miroku one last glare, Kagome made her way towards the weapon rack, her nose scrunching up as she examined the different type of weapons. Finally, she picked up a sai and weighed it in her hands for a few moments before making her way towards Tezuka (who was currently fighting another urge to step back and away).

"I need a finger," Higurashi said happily as if she wasn't planning on poking Tezuka and drawing his blood.

Tezuka glanced warily at the sai and hesitantly held out a hand. He gave a quick mental prayer, hoping that she wouldn't accidently cut off his finger or something equally as painful. Higurashi was so accident-prone too. He held his breath as she gave his index finger a sharp poke with the tip of the sai and then almost sighed with relief when she _didn't _slice off the same finger.

Higurashi pulled Tezuka's hand closer to her and placed the small stone tablet on the small wound and waited until his blood completed layered the surface with her carved character on it. She smiled and plucked the stone tablet off his finger and gave him a handkerchief for his wound. "All done," she announced.

He nodded, tightening his hold on the handkerchief.

"Now…"

"Your blood," Wakagami murmured.

Tezuka watched Higurashi swallow hard, resting the sharp edge of the sai against her palm. She took in several deep breaths as if attempting to calm herself. Tezuka narrowed his eyes.

"I can't do it," Higurashi suddenly cried out, thrusting the sai in Wakagami's direction. "Here."

Tezuka's eyes widen in realization and then watched in horror as Wakagami took the weapon, threw it into the air and caught it by the handle and sliced Higurashi's palm open in one fluid motion. He watched the blood leak out, pooling in her palm and wondered how deep the cut went.

"Ouch," she mumbled.

Understatement of the year.

Higurashi gave Wakagami an evil glare before turning her attention back towards her bleeding palm. She dropped the stone tablet into her palm and narrowed her eyes in concentration. Tezuka swore he saw a pink spark dance across her bloody palm before she broke out in a smile. "All done!" she said happily, fishing out the tablet.

Tezuka blinked and then slowly handed her back her handkerchief. She took it and allowed the cotton to soak up most of her blood before pulling out a thin string and looping it around the stone tablet. "Wear this at all times," she instructed, wiping it clear of any linger blood before handing it to him. He eyed it for a moment before taking it and slipping it onto his wrist.

"Thank you," he politely said, giving her a small bow.

She smiled at him in response. "Why don't you try out that backward rolling serve again?"

_Backward rolling serve?_

Tezuka pressed his lips together and tightened his arm muscle as if anticipating the upcoming pain. "All right," he said. He gave Echizen a look as he made his way back towards the middle of the dojo and picked up his racket and a nearby tennis ball. Echizen shrugged and Tezuka took a deep breath, tightened his grip on his racket as he threw the tennis ball into the air.

He saw Higurashi give him two thumbs up from the corner of his eyes as the ball dropped down, back towards him.

He struck.


	14. Fresh Breath

**It's been a while since I last updated… I apologize. Again. I sort of lost my Inuyasha and Prince of Tennis faze and then I had classes, finals, and family issues. But I'm back and hopefully the wait for the next update won't be as long. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha, Prince of Tennis or any of its characters.**

New Beginnings  
>[14] Fresh Breath<p>

If it wasn't for the impact the ball made as it smacked against his racket, Tezuka would have thought that he had missed the tennis ball. The lack of the usual flair of pain in his arm took away his usual hesitation and made him hit the ball harder than before. The force made the ball disappear in front of him, speed too fast for his eyes to follow. It appeared on the other side of the dojo, rolling innocently towards him.

_Nothing, _his mind registered. He felt nothing. No pain, no throb, nothing.

He took in a shaky breath and brought up his right hand to grab a hold of his left arm.

"Well?" Higurashi asked, seemly appearing out of nowhere, interrupting his thoughts. She tilted her face, trying to catch his expression. "Does it work?"

Tezuka slowly looked up and stared at her. His mouth opened but he was unable to form words.

"Obviously," he heard Echizen mutter somewhere in the distant. He flashed a smirk in Tezuka's direction. "Buchou, let's have a match."

"Ryoma, hush," Higurashi scolded.

"Are you sure you sealed it?" Higurashi's friend asked in a low whisper. "Because it seems like you just made it more powerful."

His words brought Tezuka back into reality, leaving him to wonder if Higurashi's charm—or seal as she had put it—really _did _work, and if so, did that seriously mean that his arm was actually cursed? He almost shuddered at the though. He eyed her warily, knowing very well that Echizen, his cousin, and her group of friends were speaking in riddles in order to hide whatever they were hiding from him. But as much as Tezuka wanted to know what the hell was going on, he reminded himself that he was a very patient man and Higurashi had just _healed _his arm. He could wait.

"Thank you," he said, his voice sounding odd even to his own ears, as if choked up by emotions and then bowed.

Higurashi blinked. "No problem," he replied, giggling nervously while flushing a brilliant red.

"Do not be so relieved," Wakagami murmured to the young woman. "The seal is holding it back for now but you will need to find a permanent solution quickly. The longer you do not, the stronger it will get and soon your seal will be useless."

His words, of course, made no sense to Tezuka but Higurashi frowned. "Ruin the happy moment, why don't you?" She wrinkled her nose in disgust. "It should last a couples months at least though… right?" Higurashi asked worriedly. Then, without giving Wakagami time to answer her question she turned her attention back to Tezuka. "How long has your arm been giving you trouble?" she demanded.

"Since my first year in junior high."

She gaped. "That long?"

"My elbow was injured then. It acted up towards the end of my second year but healed completely in my third. Yips later put pressure on my shoulder but that had also healed by the end of my third year," he said truthfully.

"Yips?" she repeated, brows furrowing in confusion. "Nevermind," she then said quickly before Tezuka could explain. "I don't want to know. It'll just confuse me."

"Like what?" Echizen demanded.

Higurashi tilted her head, thinking. "Like… the fact that _it _was accelerated." She gave Tezuka a pitying look and elaborated. "Your arm wouldn't have been… uh, cursed if you hadn't been injured. But since you were injured, the uh… dormant curse awoke." She hummed softly, tapping along finger against her chin. "Ah Momoshiro!"

"What about him?" Ryoma asked suspiciously.

"Nothing like that," Higurashi replied swiftly. "Ew. Has he been injured recently?

Tezuka frowned. "No."

"Has he been having any… unusual body pain?"

"Not that I know of," he answered slowly, wishing again that they would tell him exactly what was going on. This wasn't just affecting him anymore, this was affecting his teammate!

"He hurt his ankle a couples years ago in middle school," Echizen said softly.

Higurashi frowned again. "Hm… have you noticed him getting… hmm… More powerful more quickly afterwards?"

Echizen shrugged. "He was already injured when I met him."

They turned towards Tezuka who blinked in response. After a moment, he realized that they were waiting for an answer. He cleared his throat, "Momoshiro had always been a fast learner."

"Good for him," Higurashi replied seriously.

He frowned. "His shots have gotten more powerful quicker than Inui originally predicted."

"Ooh," she breathed softly. "Okay… um… well, it wouldn't hurt to observe just to make sure…" She turned towards her cousin, "Do you guys have practice tomorrow?"

"No. We have a match."

"Er, am I allow to attend?"

Echizen shrugged. "I guess…"

"You guess," she repeated, her tone flat.

"Well… the bus is for the tennis players," Echizen explained. "But Horio rides it so I don't see why not."

Tezuka glared at him. "Horio is on the tennis team," he reminded. His first thought was to scold Echizen for not respecting a fellow teammate but he remembered that it was Echizen. He was more than grateful that Echizen even remembered the first-year's name. Echizen forgetting that Horio was actually on the tennis team might have more to do with Echizen's memory than wanting to disrespect his fellow first-year.

"Oh."

Higurashi had no idea what was going on. "So… can I come?"

"Yes," Tezuka assured, even though he knew that he should bring up the subject with the couch before confirming. But Ryuzaki's granddaughter and her friend both rode the club bus so he didn't see why Higurashi and her friends couldn't.

"Great," she said excitedly, clapping her hands together and then winced, drawing Tezuka's attention back to the very wet, very bloody handkerchief that was currently wrapped around her injured hand. He noted that the wound seemed to still be bleeding and wondered if they should be rushing Higurashi to the hospital instead of discussing whether or not she would be able to ride the bus with Seigaku's boys tennis club. "When does Momoshiro-kun's match start anyway?"

Tezuka translated this to: "How much time do I have to kill before I can do what I went there to do?"

"It depends on how long the other matches are," Echizen answered with another shrug. A nasty habit, Tezuka noted that he seemed to have picked up from his time in the states.

"Huh?"

"Doubles play first," Tezuka explained. "Momoshiro will be playing third singles tomorrow."

Higurashi faltered. "So… half an hour?"

Echizen sighed. "We have two doubles and three sets each."

"Er… one hour?"

"_Three _sets," he repeated.

"I don't know what that means!" Higurashi exclaimed. "What the hell's a set?"

Echizen glared furiously at his cousin as her two friends snickered in the background. His lips twitched in amusement; for someone who is cousins with Echizen (not to mention that they do have a rather close relationship) he couldn't believe that Higurashi had picked up literally nothing about tennis over the years.

"You're coming with us tomorrow, aren't you?" Echizen asked. "What's the difference?"

She groaned, ignoring his question. "Does that mean I have to sit through six games?"

Tezuka had to physically hold back a smile.

"_Sets."_

She glared. "I'm going to join the archery club and you watch me and my fellow club members shoot arrows and compete against each other. Then we can see how much _you _know about it."

"You learned archery _a year ago, _that doesn't count!" he shot back. "I've been playing tennis my entire life. The old man even attempted to teach you."

Higurashi scowled and rubbed her forehead with her injured hand, successfully letting her blood drip down the length of her arm. Tezuka found himself half concerned about her wound—which appeared to _still _be bleeding—and half amazed that she really was an archery prodigy if she was able to strike the exact same spot on a target when she picked up a bow only a year ago!

"Enough," Wakagami stated coldly, stepping in between the two cousins. He grabbed Higurashi's injured hand and yanked in towards him, making her yelp in pain and surprise. Wakagami frowned, examining the bloody handkerchief slowly and began to unwrap it.

Tezuka winced when he caught sight of the wound; it was a lot deeper than he had first realized. If Oishi was here, the poor man would be having a panic attack. Tezuka wasn't a doctor, but as he watch Wakagami taking his time to examine the wound, he wondered if they should be making their way to the emergency room at the moment. Juding by the amount of blood the handkerchief had soaked up and the drips on the floor, Tezuka was surprised that Higurashi was still looking healthy.

"Perhaps we should—" he began only to cut himself off with an odd choking sound when Wakagami brought Higurashi's hand towards his lips and gave her wound a lick. His mouth fell open when Wakagami didn't immediately pulled back in disgust, wondering what the hell was he doing like Tezuka had expected and instead continued with his… ministrations.

He looked around the room, wondering if he was the only one finding this situation weird—not to mention disgusting! Does the man know nothing about diseases that the blood could carry? Her two friends were staring with wide eyes and Echizen… Echizen… well, Tezuka had never seen such a shocked expression on the younger man's face before. If not for the situation, Tezuka would have found it quite amusing.

Higurashi's face was completely scarlet (Tezuka was just surprised that she had enough blood in her body to blush) but she did not make a move to pull her hand away.

Once Wakagami had literally licked Higurashi's hand clean, he dropped it and gave off an almost satisfied purr. "Er, t-thank you," Higurashi stammered. "It stopped bleeding… I think."

"Hn."

Tezuka watch as Wakagami brought up his own hand, which were slightly dirtied with Higurashi's blood and licked it away slowly. As if savoring the flavor. Tezuka shifted uncomfortably, not sure if he wanted to remain in the man's house any longer, much less stay in the same room as him.

Silence. Then:

"I don't really know what to say right now," Higurashi said, awkwardly.

* * *

><p>The couch wasn't pleased with Tezuka's decision about letting Higurashi and her friends—Miroku and Sango, he found out (he still wasn't sure of their family names though)—onto the bus to the court for the match.<p>

"We're not here to give free rides," he had grunted, when Echizen brought along his cousin and her friends.

Tezuka had pursed his lips, wishing very much that he was more blunt like Echizen. Echizen wouldn't hesitate to point out the couch's hypocrisy at letting Ryuzaki's granddaughter and her friend on the bus just because they were "cute". _Oh god, _he remembered thinking. _I'm turning into Echizen! _He couldn't remember a time he had dared questioned an adult's decision, especially if the adult was right (even if he _was _being a bit hypocritical).

Higurashi had stepped up in front of the coach as if sensing Tezuka's inner turmoil. She batted her eyelashes and asked for permission with a voice a pitch or two higher and whinier than her usual.

She was immediately approved of.

"I've hung out with Miroku long enough to learn how to handle situations with perverts," she said later, far in the back of the bus, away from the coach. Her seat was near Tezuka's so he couldn't help but overhear.

"My lady!" Miroku—he shuddered at the awkward familiarity of using someone's given name rather than their family name—cried. "You wound me!"

"Yea," Sango—he shuddered again—said with a giggle. "Remember that time he asked that one girl to bear his children? And she said yes?"

Tezuka blinked.

"And Miroku spend the next two days avoiding her?" The two friends laughed at the memory and despite the fact that Tezuka could not see the other man's complete form—as he was sitting in the seat in front of him—he knew that the man was more amused than embarrassed.

"In my defense," he muttered. "She was twelve; I didn't think she would accept."

"Wasn't there also a fourteen-year-old lover of yours? That waited for you?"

"I really don't remember," Miroku said, shaking his head in denial.

Their conversation, which proved to be the most interesting conversation taking place on the bus right now, caught the attention of Kikumaru. Tezuka almost felt sorry for the trio when the redhead popped up in his seat (which was located in front of Higurashi and Echizen). "Nya?" he exclaimed. "Fourteen?" Tezuka thought his voice was more shocked and pleased than anything else.

The three friends jumped slightly and looked at the redhead in surprise as if just noticing their environment. Whenever the three of them talked, they always seemed to be in their own world so Tezuka wasn't surprise at their reaction. "Uh… well," Higurashi stammered and then explained quiet lamely, "it was a joke."

Kikumaru seemed to have not heard her. "How old were you when you went around proposing to girls?" he demanded and then gasped. "Did you propose to Higurashi-chan too?"

Tezuka heard an amused snort and assumed it was from Sango.

"Ooh," Kikumaru cooed, eyeing Higurashi gleefully, "You're so popular, nya!"

Higurashi flushed. "He does it to everybody, I swear!"

"I don't think your boyfriend's going to be too pleased with your popularity," he teased.

"He's _not _my boyfriend!" Higurashi pressed, scowling.

Tezuka begged to differ. After all, people didn't usually let other people lick their… wounds clean unless they had some sort of close physical relationship. Tezuka frowned at the memory, he still wasn't sure what to make of what happened yesterday.

Before Kikumaru could tease the poor girl further, Echizen shifted and his head fell into Higurashi's lap with a soft snore. Kikumaru blinked at the younger boy, "Ochibi's asleep." With a giggle and a couple gag-worthy soft baby noises directed at the first year, Kikumaru pressed a finger against his lips, winked in Higurashi's direction and slid back down into his seat.

Higurashi sat still for a couple seconds before leaning down and mouthing her thanks against the boy's cheek. She smiled warmly and ran her fingers through Echizen's silky-looking green-black hair.

He was more than a little surprised to see the boy open his gold eyes, blinking them slowly at his cousin as if he had just woke up from his nap. He smirked openly before sliding his eyes closed again and attempted to actually go to sleep this time. Tezuka blinked. This was the first time he saw Echizen go out on his way to help someone and _not _tried to cover it up. He knew Echizen was a good person and if needed, he helped others in his own way but he had always covered up his heroic acts with, "It was just so I could play tennis." or "He was annoying me."

"They're very close, eh?" Fuji whispered, his breath tickling Tezuka's ear, making him tense in surprise.

"Fuji," Tezuka warned because Fuji was smiling which meant that Fuji was up to something and Tezuka was in no mood to put up with another one of Fuji's pranks.

"Just observing," Fuji chuckled.

Tezuka frowned, looking down at his open book again, reminding himself that he was supposed to be reading. However, that fact didn't stop his gaze from sliding across the aisle back in Higurashi and Echizen's direction. He watched with what might have been envy as Higurashi continued to run her fingers through Echizen's thin, silky locks. He then proceeded to drop his book in surprise when Higurashi brought up her hand to hide her yawn.

He stared.

What?

He blinked.

_What?_

Higurashi appeared to have felt his gaze and turned her head slightly to face him. She blinked large blue eyes in confusion. "Um… Tezuka-san?"

He opened his mouth but found himself unable to reply, instead he followed the movement of her hand with his eyes.

She stared.

He stared back.

Brows furrowing in confusion, she followed his gaze and found herself staring at her own hand. Realization suddenly clicked and Higurashi immediately tightened the hand in question into a fist. She pursed her lips, her jaw muscle tightened and she bit her lower lip worriedly.

"Your wound…" Tezuka couldn't help but mutter. Where there was once—only yesterday—a deep wound on Higurashi's palm was now smooth, unscarred skin.

Although she was faced away from him, he knew that she had heard him when she immediately flinched at his words. She refused to turn around in order to face him even as she said, "I don't suppose… that you will believe me if I say I covered it with make-up?"

Out of the corner of his eyes, he noticed her friend peeking over the seat in front of him, as if judging his reaction. "No," he answered truthfully, ignoring both her friend and Fuji's gazes.

"I didn't think so."

Higurashi didn't elaborate and Tezuka didn't bother pressing the issue. He was going to find out one way or another; let her keep her secrets for now. Fuji shifted slightly next to him and more a moment Tezuka was afraid that he was going to attempt to manipulate the information out of him but was more than glad to see that Fuji was only getting ready to get off the bus as they have arrived at the courts.

Stepping off the bus, Tezuka couldn't help but take a deep breath, glad to be off the stuffy vehicle only to choke softly as he took in the large, offending-looking purple bus parked next to theirs. He had to physically hold back a groan when he saw its owner walk up to him.

"Tezuka," Atobe greeted.

"Atobe," he greeted back tightly.

"Oh wow," he heard Higurashi say somewhere behind him. "I didn't know tennis was _this _popular."

"You will be playing singles one, I presume?"

Tezuka thinned his lips in annoyance. "No."

Atobe's eyes widened for a brief moment before he smirked and looked over the group behind Tezuka. His eyes landed on Echizen. "The brat's back in Japan, I see."

Tezuka didn't bother with a reply. "Are you the brat?" Higurashi whispered to her cousin.

Echizen huffed but otherwise ignored her words. He stepped forward, stood next to Tezuka and glared. "Monkey King," he muttered.

Atobe glared back. "As rude as ever," he drawled and turned his attention, giving the other members a look over. "Heh, still keeping the same old team, eh, Tezuka? Except…" he frowned, taking in Sasabe's slender form and three other unfamiliar faces. "Hm? And new cheerleaders?" he sneered.

"You're the one to talk," Echizen muttered.

"Heh," Atobe huffed, tossing his hair back. "I deserve every cheer, every praise, every fan I have. You on the other hand…"

"We need to sign in," Tezuka cut in, holding back a sigh. He didn't remember the rivalry between Atobe and Echizen being _this _bad. Atobe must have really felt lonely when Echizen was away for the past two years having no one to match his wits with.

His words, much to Tezuka's annoyance was ignored. "I'm pretty sure I kicked your ass," Echizen reminded with a grin. His eyes glinted even in the shadow of his hate and Tezuka had a feeling that he wasn't going to like Echizen's next words. "I even shaved a monkey, if I remember correctly."

Atobe fumed and Tezuka had to resist the urge to order the young freshmen laps—after all, he needed Echizen at his top form for the match later if it got to him.

"Assuming that the monkey is him," one of Higurashi's friend whispered. "You don't suppose your cousin actually, literally _shaved _him… do you?"

"I don't know," Higurashi answered truthfully. "When we were six, Ryoma shaved off uncle's eyebrows."

Tezuka twitched. "We need to sign in," he repeated. "Please excuse us." He gave Atobe a slight bow and then walked away, heading towards the signing in area, confident that his team would follow.

They did.

Unfortunately for him, Atobe chose to do the same.

"How unfortunate that I won't be able to see your play but there's always later. I'll just see how much that the brat has improved."

Echizen has more than _improved, _Tezuka wanted to say. Echizen had gone to America and came back with new wings. It was amazing that the young man hadn't decided to go pro yet but Tezuka had a feeling that it was just a matter of time. Instead of verbalizing his thoughts, Tezuka said, "Echizen is playing singles one." _We will not get to singles one, _was left unsaid.

"Disappointing," Atobe sighed.

Tezuka stepped in front of the stand with his team and curtly told the man their arrival. The man smiled and directed him towards the courts that they would be using. Tezuka nodded his thanks and walked off, disappointed that Atobe was still following him. "Do you not have your own match to get to?" he asked as politely as possible. He wasn't playing. Echizen most likely wasn't playing; he wasn't sure why Atobe was still with him. Had the man missed arguing with Echizen that much?

"Actually, we finished." Atobe smirked and tossed his hair back again. "Be flatter that I decide to witness your team's match."

"Please," Tezuka thought. "No one is stopping you from leaving."

"It's too bad you guys don't have your power player," Atobe muttered, glancing at the arrival of their opponents. "I'm afraid you're going to lose your second doubles. You should have put Momoshiro in your second doubles."

Fuji smiled and spoke up for the first time since Atobe's arrival, "Sasabe is our current power player."

Atobe blinked and gave Sasabe a look over. "Really?" he asked, more than a bit amused. "He's even skinner than you are."

Sasabe smiled at him but otherwise did not comment.

"What's a power player?" Higurashi whispered to her friend in confusion.

"A powerful player," her friend answered back.

"A player that plays with strength," Inui corrected.

"Same thing," her friend said, shrugging.

"Wait…" Higurashi said, putting her hands up for emphasis. Tezuka felt his gaze fall onto her smooth palm. "Strength? What strength? What do you even need strength for? Just hit the ball over the net!"

If it wasn't for the slight physical resemblance and the attitude (at times) Tezuka wouldn't have believed that Higurashi and Echizen were actually related. That girl knew absolutely nothing about tennis, he was surprised that she even knew there was a net involved!

"It would be near impossible for the average person if their opponent was a strong power player. The force behind power players hits are too great," Inui explained. "That's like me throwing a medicine ball at an infant and expecting him to catch and toss it back to me. The infant doesn't have the required strength to do so."

Even without looking at her, Tezuka knew that Higurashi was rolling her eyes. "It's a _tennis _ball," she emphasized. "How much force can you put behind a tennis ball?"

"You played against Momoshiro's _Jack Knife."_

Higurashi blinked. "What does that have to do with anything?"

Tezuka's mouth almost fell open. Atobe made a soft choking sound next to him.

"Momoshiro's _Jack Knife _isn't exactly a weak ball," Inui said hesitantly. His glasses glinted. "Then again… you did hit it back single-handedly."

"No!" Higurashi said quickly. "That wasn't… well, you see… um, that was only because—"

"Kagome," Echizen interrupted softly.

Higurashi immediately turned towards her cousin. "Was it really that powerful?" Tezuka saw her mouth to her cousin.

Echizen shrugged.

"Wait a minute," Atobe finally said, stepping out in front of Higurashi. He eyed the young woman for a moment. "You went up against Momoshiro's _Jack Knife?" _he asked, raising his eyebrows in disbelief. "Who are you?"

Tezuka almost groaned when Echizen stepped in front of Higurashi, efficiently stepping in between his cousin and his rival. "No one you need to know."

_Ten more minutes until the match begins, _Tezuka thought.

"Oh?" Atobe all but purred, amused. Any awe and curiosity he had about Higurashi all but disappeared. His attention was immediately taken up by the fact that Echizen was actually, defending someone. "Possessive, aren't you? Your girlfriend?"

Tezuka sighed and wasn't even surprise and Higurashi squealed her outrage. "We're cousins!"

And since Higurashi was just an excuse to go neck to neck with Echizen, Atobe paid her no mind. "I'm sure you dear girlfriend is more interested in the likes of me," he said, grabbing a hold of Higurashi's hand and pulling her towards him.

Tezuka had a feeling that his headache was going to double by the time the match begins. Forget that, he might even need to be hospitalized by the end of the day by the rate this was going, he noted. Atobe seemed to be making it his life's work to annoy the freshmen regular, not that Tezuka was actually surprise. Echizen was usually so dispassionate about everything. Riling him up and forcing him to actually _react _was rather amusing. He still felt slightly bad for Higurashi though, being in the middle of Echizen and Atobe's rivalry when it was obvious that Atobe was not remotely interested in her despite his flirtation. Flirtation, Tezuka noticed that was making Echizen murderous, Momoshiro more than a little jealous and Higurashi extremely uncomfortable.

_Ten more minutes, _he chanted. At least the three idiots (Momoshiro now included since he was loudly voicing his stand against Atobe holding Higurashi so close) respected tennis enough that they would cease their conflict when the second doubles begin playing.

Higurashi stared at the hand-in-hand contact with wide eyes. For someone as popular as she was, Tezuka was slightly surprised at her obvious discomfort.

"Go back to the zoo," Echizen shot back, reaching out and grabbing his cousin's free hand, tugging her towards him.

Tezuka could hardly believe what he was witnessing. Atobe Keigo and Echizen Ryoma, two of the top high school tennis players in the country and they were playing tug-o-war over a girl—"This is so interesting, nya," Kikumaru said excitedly, somewhere in the background—as if she was some mere object.

It was a good thing Echizen hasn't gone pro! Tezuka could already imagine the gossip column.

"Doesn't this remind you of Inuyasha and Koga," one of Higurashi's friend whispered to the other with a giggle, not looking the least bit worried.

"What did you say?" Atobe growled out, pulling Higurashi back towards him.

A muscle in Tezuka's jaw twitched. He had a feeling that neither Echizen nor Atobe remembered that they were not tugging on a rope. It was a _human being_—Echizen's own cousin, for crying out loud—that they were both manhandling. Forget the fact that Atobe was a captain of his own team, Tezuka was going to send both of them running laps.

However, before he could snap at the two of them, Higurashi beat him to it. "That's it!" she screamed, yanking both arms away, throwing both males off balance, surprising everyone with her strength. "Both of you just shut up! If you're going to act like five-year-olds! I'm going to treat you like five year olds!" She glared at the boys and rubbed her wrists angrily. "From now on until the end of your tennis game"—no one bothered to correct her—"You're in time out. That means that I do not want to hear another word out of your mouth!"

Atobe actually looked offended. "I beg your—"

"I said _shut up_!" she screeched, face red, eyes flashing and looking very, very murderous.

Atobe's mouth closed with a click.

Tezuka frowned at Higurashi, noticing that the air around her seemed to shimmer with her anger. It reminded him of Echizen's Pinnicle of Perfection all those years ago. Looking closer, he noticed what appeared to be pink sparks, dancing across Higurashi's skin. He blinked in surprise and they were gone.

Curious.

* * *

><p>Five minutes into the second doubles match, Higurashi fell asleep.<p>

"Kagome," her friend whispered, shaking her.

"Sit," she muttered, scooting away from her friend, only to lose her balance on the bench and fall with a thud.

Tezuka didn't take his eyes off Fuji and Sasabe's match—it was a rather rough match, rougher than he thought it would be—not even when Higurashi's hand reached up and gripped his thigh, hosting herself in a sitting position. "Fuck damn it," she groaned. She blinked sleepy eyes at him, muttered an apology and crawled back into her seat.

"Tell me I'm not imagining things," her friend whispered urgently.

"Imagining what?" Higurashi asked, looking around.

Tezuka looked over at them slightly confused, wondering if he had, perhaps, missed something. Or does this have to do with the… curse?

"Oh be quiet," Atobe drawled, obviously still a bit miffed that he had been told off by the younger girl. "This is a tennis match."

"Look," her friend said, pointing in Sasabe's direction. "Does his aura look familiar to you?"

"Yes," Atobe sniffed, not pleased that he was ignored. "Look at the tennis match."

Higurashi narrowed her eyes as if in concentration. Then her eyes widened in what appeared to be… fear. She sucked in a deep breath and paled, losing all coloring in her face, making her look paper-white. "Oh my god," she said.

Tezuka turned his attention back towards Sasabe wondering what had her and her friends all shaken up. The only unusual thing he could see was that Sasabe was currently having a power rally with a player at least two times his size and made of what appeared to be pure muscle and winning. But really, if he thought about it, it wasn't any more unusual than the fact that she was a master at archery with apparently only a single year of training. Not to mention he _still _had a slight bruise from when she punched him a couple days ago.

Turning his attention back towards him, he noticed that she seemed to shudder with fear.

"Naraku."


	15. Remnants of a Spider

**Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha, Prince of Tennis or any of its characters.**

New Beginnings  
>[15] Remnants of a Spider<p>

"_You are positive that it was Naraku's aura?"_

Kagome bit her knuckle, "For the last time, Sesshomaru. Yes!" She almost rolled her eyes. She spent a year of her life hunting down the half-demon, there was no way she could have mistaken his aura for someone else's.

"_You did not confront him?"_

"No, of course not," she replied quickly. "We're in public. Miroku said that since _he_ hasn't confronted us yet, we should just carry on like before, pretending that we didn't notice anything." She sighed and leaned against the tree behind her. "Beside, he's in the middle of a tennis game."

Silence. Then:

"_Tennis match," _Sesshomaru repeated slowly, sounding distant even through the phone. _"Naraku has lowered himself so far that he is playing a game of _tennis?"

Kagome groaned. "He just has Naraku's aura. I'm not even sure it's him. He certainly doesn't look anything like Naraku."

"_Naraku is an entity that is made up of multiple low-class demons," _Sesshomaru reminded. _"He can look however he wishes to look."_

Kagome groaned again. "Damn. I forgot about that." She closed her eyes, allowing herself a moment to relax. "Besides… didn't we kill him?" She was pretty sure that her final arrow had _completely _purified the half demon. She had put so much purification energy into her last arrow that not even dust was left of the man.

"_Your friends have been… reincarnated and even remember their past lives, do they not?"_

"But I thought Naraku was in the past! We have to defeat the witch now or something. Or deal with the return of demons. I don't know!" She sighed heavily. "The point is, Naraku should just be a distant memory."

"_Perhaps he has been reincarnated?"_

Kagome wanted to throw the cell phone in frustration but didn't think her cousin would appreciate that. "I doubt that." She picked up a nearby twig and poked the earth with it. "I'm Kikyo's reincarnation, aren't I? And we have different auras."

Sesshomaru thought the fact over. _"Did you sense the jewel on him?"_

"Nope."

"_Assuming that the witch made a false jewel, would you even be able to sense it?"_

"Well," Kagome said, remembering. "Inuyasha and I have fought demons before that had a dozen of fake jewels and I was able to sense those so I don't see why not."

Sesshomaru was silent for a moment. _"If he _is _Naraku, killing him would be simple if he lacks the jewel. Nevertheless, do not confront him without me."_

"Yes sir," she muttered, knowing a Sesshomaru-dismissal when she heard one. She was not the least bit surprised when she found herself listening to the dial tone without a proper goodbye from the demon lord. Well, who was she to complain? At least she had the demon lord on her side. She couldn't imagine facing Naraku again without him. Or Inuyasha, Kagome thought grimly. That asshole was _still _in the states.

With a sigh, she got up from her seat and slowly made her way back towards the observatory bench. She slid into her seat quietly and exchanged glances with Miroku and Sango. "Sesshomaru says to wait," she whispered softly.

Miroku nodded his understanding. He held up his hand and wiggled his fingers. "Let's try not to panic. I don't think it's him."

Kagome stared at his palm and sighed. "I certainly hope you're right," she muttered.

For the first time since her arrival at the tennis courts, she turned her complete attention towards the tennis match ignoring both her cousin and his captain's questioning gaze directed her way. And while she didn't know exactly what was going on, she could see that Sasabe—Naraku, or whatever his name was-wasn't an average tennis player. Then again, so far, Tezuka, Momoshiro and even that Atobe guy had demonic energy running through their bodies.

Kagome sighed, wondering just what was going on in the world. Was everyone slowly turning into demons? Or was this a tennis player thing? Sesshomaru had a point though, if Sasabe _was _Naraku… what was he doing playing tennis? Unless he was the same as Miroku and Sango and she needed to say his name in order for him to remember. She shuddered at the thought.

Kagome was forced out of her thoughts when she felt a warm hand rest on her shoulder. She turned around, catching the worried gaze of her cousin. "I'm fine," she murmured. "I'll tell you later."

He made a small humming noise in the back of his throat but nodded once and returned his attention back to the match. Kagome knew that he was still worried though; she had always been the older sister figure and didn't remember the last time she had shown fear in front of either Ryoma or Sota. But just the thought that Naraku _might _be in the modern world was sending shivers down her spine. She didn't waste a year of her life attempting to save Japan only to have to postpone its impending destruction.

"Ah!" she could help but exclaim in surprise as Sasabe forced the tennis back over the net. It was a rather slow attack since she could clearly see the yellow ball but it seemed to flutter across the air as if it was some sort of fly. Could one even do that with tennis balls? Or was this a human with demonic energy type of thing?

"That's Sasabe's signature move," Inui explained, sensing her shock. _"Saimyosho."_

"Eh?" she cried out, snapping her head towards him, making a cracking sound. She almost winced at the sound and Tezuka looked at her worriedly. "_Saimyosho?" _she repeated, her voice horrified.

Inui nodded. "Hell wasps," he elaborated.

Slowly, Kagome turned her attention back to the match, feeling both Sango and Miroku shift closer to her. She linked her hands with both her friends, gripping them for support and swallowed when Sasabe turned his attention towards the audience after scoring a point.

His gaze caught Kagome's and he smiled in her direction.

Kagome held back a shiver. She didn't have a good feeling about this.

Tezuka found himself watching Higurashi (when _doesn't _he, nowadays?). She had been acting weird since the beginning of the match, ignoring even Adobe—Tezuka didn't think that was actually possible, even _Echizen _had trouble ignoring the man. She was currently exchanging words with her two friends in low whispers. Whatever they were talking about, they wanted to keep it to themselves, as they have distanced themselves from everyone.

"That was a very good match," Higurashi said as she and her friends made their way back towards the group. "It went a lot faster than Ryoma made me think it would go."

"Che."

"It would have taken a lot longer if Sasabe's power shots had not caught his opponent by surprise," Inui inputted, pushing up his glasses.

Higurashi smiled sweetly and she turned her attention to the lanky second-year. "Oh yes! You did a very good job too Sasabe-kun." And while her expression was sweet and her words nice, Tezuka couldn't help but shiver at the dangerous light that was obviously lurking just beneath the surface of her large blue eyes.

"Thank you Lady Kagome," Sasabe answered with a smile, surprising everyone because Sasabe was even less talkative than Tezuka was. The fact that he didn't just nod in her direction and walk off was amazing. "I did not expect to hear those words come out of your mouth."

She instantly froze.

Then her smile dropped, her expression hardened and she was the girl that had made the target explode, the girl that had put that one senior in her place in _Mythology, _the girl that despite her smiles and large, innocent sky-blue eyes, had wisdom, secrets and _danger _lurking just beneath the surface. Her two friends immediately stepped forward, angling their bodies as if to defend her in case Sasabe decided to get violent.

No one had any idea what was going on but they knew that whatever _was _going on was a lot more serious than any of them could imagine. They didn't dare interrupt, not wanting to add to the tension in the air. Then much to Tezuka's surprise, Higurashi broke out in a giggle. "Only Miroku ever calls me Lady Kagome, it's sort of weird hearing it from someone else." She smiled at him.

They eyed each other for a few seconds and then Higurashi turned her attention away and went to her cousin's side. "Are we going home now?" she asked happily, her smile a bit too bright.

"Aah," Echizen nodded.

More than one person breathed a sigh of relief as Echizen, his cousin and her friends began making their way away from the group and back towards the bus. Tezuka frowned, slightly, looked towards Sasabe who was staring at Higurashi's retreating form with a look in his eyes that made Tezuka worry slightly for the girl. Despite being on the same team with the man for the past two years, Tezuka knew nothing about the man.

The team slowly made their way back to their bus (Atobe boarded on his own, thank god—Tezuka really didn't need the additional headache—and the ride back to the school was a lot quieter than before. Echizen, for the first time since Tezuka could remember was awake the entire ride. Tezuka caught him glancing worriedly at his cousin more than once. Then when Fuji caught him looking at Echizen, Tezuka cleared his throat, pushed up his glasses and returned his attention to his book.

It really wasn't his business, Tezuka reminded himself. Whatever was going on between Echizen and Higurashi and Higurashi and Sasabe had nothing to do with him. And curious as he was about the subject, he had no right to press the issue.

The ride back seemed to take longer—must be the tension in the air—and the entire group, minus a couple people, (which really consisted only of Higurashi and her friends) breathed a sigh of relief. Tezuka bid everyone farewell after a few parting words and made his way into the school so he could plan for the next match (which was only a week away—best not drop his guard).

Tezuka rubbed the bridge of his nose as he sat down by his usual window seat in the empty classroom. _This is the last time I'm going to think about this,_ he decided at last. He had no time to worry about Higurashi, Echizen and their problems. Right now, he was trying to bring get his team qualified for the High School Nationals—which was a hell of a lot more competitive than the junior high one.

He got out his timesheet and his pencil and was just about to begin planning when voices, just outside his window caught his ear. Tezuka would have ignored it but then realized that it was Higurashi and Sasabe's voice he was hearing.

He debated with himself for a moment or so and then sighed; Tezuka placed his pencil down and got up from the seat. He slowly made his way towards the window and looked out, catching sight of Echizen, Higurashi, her two friends and Sasabe.

"Who are you?" Higurashi demanded, her voice cold in a way Tezuka has never heard before. And here he was, thinking that she was frightening before.

Sasabe smirked in a way Tezuka had never seen. "Not who you think I am," he answered vaguely.

Higurashi narrowed her eyes and made her way towards him despite the protest of her friends, only stopping when she was directly in front of him. "Who _are _you?" she repeated.

Sasabe sighed and began unbuttoning his shirt. With a shrug, his shirt fell of his shoulder and he turned around, revealing a spider-shaped scar on his back. Tezuka's eyes widened; why had he not seen this all those time that Sasabe had changed in the locker rooms. "Can you guess?" he asked, turning around to show her his scar.

Higurashi took her step back and her friends a step forward. "I killed him," she said, making Tezuka blink in confusion. "He died."

"Yes," Sasabe confirmed. "But I did not."

"I don't… remember you."

"You wouldn't," Sasabe confirmed. "When father had the jewel, he was so obsessed with it that his soul had more or less merged with it. So when you killed him, you killed his current body and half his soul. The other half—me—remained in the jewel. And you _know _that you can't ever completely purify the jewel, so I remained."

Tezuka felt his head spin in confusion as he tried to process the information. Something about purification and a jewel. More importantly, apparently Higurashi had killed someone? Sasabe's father? And they were utterly calm about it? He wondered if they knew he was eavesdropping and was just playing a trick on him. He hoped so.

"I-I got rid of it," Higurashi cried out. "It was in my hands and then I told it to cease its existence and it disappeared. _Disappeared!_"

"Yes," he agreed. "And then a witch pulled us out."

"_What?" _she shrieked. "No, no! That can't just happen. I didn't spend a year of my life going around—"

Without warning, Sasabe grabbed Higurashi by her wrists, twirled her around and pushed her up against the fence behind him. "You stupid, foolish priestess. Instead of worrying about that, why don't you concentrate more on the fact that a witch had manage to pull the Jewel of Four Souls back into existence?"

Tezuka's eyes widened at the display of violence that Sasabe was displaying. Before anyone could pull the two of them apart though, there was a crackle in the air, pink sparks of what appeared to be lightning seemed to dance around Higurashi—and he _wasn't _imagining it this time—and Sasabe pulled back with a yelp.

Higurashi grabbed a fistful of his shirt, which was now hanging loose and open and yanked Sasabe towards her until their faces were inches apart. "Touch me again and I will give you a taste of exactly the agony Naraku went through in his final moments," she hissed. "Do I make myself clear?"

Even at his distance, Tezuka knew that she wasn't joking. He couldn't believe he was worried about her before. The one he _should _be worried about, he realized, was Sasabe. Higurashi could handle herself just fine.

"There it is," Sasabe said with a feral grin as he pulled back and rubbed his hands together. "I was wondering what happened to the spitfire."

Higurashi glared at him.

"I want to see the woman that stood up against a thousand enemies and held her ground. I want to see the woman who isn't afraid to stain her hands with blood, who isn't afraid to kill, and who isn't afraid to save someone that hates her kind. So when _you_ are fully become Lady Kagome, Holy Priestess, Guardian of the Shikon Jewel, gather your remaining lackeys and then come find me." He began buttoning his shirt and gave her friends a quick glance. "Make it quick, I won't last long."

"What does that mean?" she asked, frowning.

"Come find me when you're ready," Sasabe said, beginning to walk away, "and I will tell you everything."

Tezuka blinked, slightly dazed, unsure of what to make of the conversation he had just overheard. _Jewel of Four Souls; _hadn't he heard that somewhere before? Their conversation had literally made zero sense to him. Higurashi had apparently killed Sasabe's father who seemed to be more than fine with it. More importantly, what was the sparks that he had seen dancing across Higurashi's skin? Tezuka tapped his pencil against his chin and then blinked in shock, remembering that he was supposed to be planning for their next match, not listing to some story about demons and jewels and—

He almost gasped.

The Shikon Jewel, or the Jewel of Four Souls, it was a large part of their first unit in _Mythology. _He tilted his head in confusion, were they talking about a play? A game? Before he could give it further thought, however, someone knocked on the door to the classroom efficiently making him jump in surprise.

Tezuka looked up, his grip immediately tightened around his pencil. "Come in," he said curtly.

The figure walked in slowly, tall and lanky. Tezuka narrowed his eyes, hiding his surprise. "Sasabe."

"Ryoma?" Rinko called out softly, knocking on the door to his bedroom.

He grunted in answer, enjoying the soft glow of his lamp light and the weight of Karupin sitting on his chest.

The door opened a crack and Rinko poked her head through it. "Your friend's here to see you."

Ryoma turned his head towards his mother and give her a flat look. When she returned his gaze with one of his own, Ryoma huffed and rolled over in his bed, pulling his cat with him despite his protests. "I don't want to," he said, his words muffled by his blankets.

Rinko sighed. "It's your tennis captain," she said. "What happens if it's important?"

_That_ caught Ryoma's ear. He sat up in surprise, still holding onto his cat. "Buchou?" he repeated. What could Buchou possibly want with him? Ryoma groaned and forced himself—and Karupin—out of bed, following his mother across the hall and down the stairs. He hoped Buchou wasn't here to ask him about Kagome and Sasabe.

By the time he made his way down into the living room, his mother had already made sure Buchou was comfortable, sitting in the largest sofa they had to offer and had a cup of hot tea in his hands. Tezuka stood up the moment Ryoma stepped foot into the room. "Echizen," Tezuka greeted.

Ryoma stared at him. "Buchou," he murmured. Ryoma inched his way towards the towering man and took a seat across from him on the long couch. He waited.

"I want to know exactly what's going on," Tezuka said firmly.

Ryoma winched and shifted Karupin in his arms. He sighed and rubbed the cat underneath the chin making her purr loudly. "I can't really say…"

"Echizen," Tezuka said with a glare. Ryoma recognized it as a glare that promised laps. "Whatever happened between Higurashi and Sasabe made me lose a regular today."

Ryoma's eyes widened. "Sasabe-senpai quit?"

Tezuka nodded in confirmation. He held up his arm, showing Echizen the charm that Kagome had made for him. "I refrained myself from asking since it was not my business but the moment Sasabe quit due to an exchange between him and your cousin, it became my business." He paused as if for effect. "And I want to know _exactly_ what's going on.


	16. Thunderstorm Passing

**Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha, Prince of Tennis or any of its characters.**

New Beginnings  
>[16] Thunderstorm Passing<p>

"I'm home!" Kagome announced happily, toeing off her shoe and stepping into the warm of the Echizen household. "Auntie? Uncle?" Besides the confrontation with Sasabe from earlier, it was a good day. Sesshomaru wasn't nearly as frightening as she had first made him out to be.

"They went out," Ryoma answered softly, stepping out to greet her—actually, if he was completely honest with himself, it was really to judge her mood before he unloaded everything to her. Kagome, he had learned from the incident with… the green-eyed man from Sesshomaru's house, was rather frightening when she wanted to be.

She smiled at him, "That's unusual."

"Mom went shopping," Ryoma answered, eyeing her expression. "The old man followed."

"Ah," she acknowledged as she stretched. "Uncle ran out of magazines, did he?" she asked, making her way to the living room only to stop dead at the figure sitting on the couch.

"Buchou's here," Ryoma supplied, rather late.

Tezuka stood up slowly, his eyes raking Kagome's form as if meeting her for the first time. He gave her a rather curious gaze but bowed and greeted her. "Higurashi-san," he murmured softly.

"Um…" Kagome faltered, narrowing her eyes at his odd behavior. Though she didn't know the man well, she knew enough to understand that this wasn't the captain's typical behavior. "Tezuka-san…"

Silence.

He was still eyeing her. With a frown Kagome turned towards her cousin about to ask him if something was wrong only to catch a sight of him, shifting uncomfortably where he stood, looking everywhere but at her. There was something odd… she gasped as realization struck, whipping around until she was completed faced towards the young tennis player. He shrunk underneath her furious gaze. "You told him!" she accused. "I can't believe you told him! I'm going to kill you!"

Her words seemed to spring Tezuka into action. He may not be familiar with the young woman but Kagome was sure that Tezuka knew, or at the very least, seen enough to understand that she was not to be underestimated. Taking a step forward, he barked, "Higurashi-san!"

"What?" Kagome snarled, whipping back around to face him. And since he already knew her secrets, she had no need to hide. Her hair flared around her uncontrollably as pink sparks danced around her skin. She watched with satisfaction as Tezuka took an involuntary step back in shock. And while she knew that they would need to tell Tezuka on way or another—she had planned on telling him sometime soon—he was, after all, more involved than anyone would have liked, Kagome was actually more angry that Ryoma had told his captain without consulting her first.

"Sasabe quit the team," Ryoma offered a bit quietly, stepping in between his cousin and captain. These were two great forces at work and although Tezuka was new to the entire situation, Ryoma knew that he was not one to back down. And Kagome… Kagome wouldn't even dream of it. Kagome had always been protective of both her friends and family, even back when she was a seven-year-old. Ryoma had no doubt in his mind that if something were to happen, Kagome would not only attempt to protect those she cared about but actually succeed.

Kagome frowned, wrinkling her nose as she took in the new information. She looked at Ryoma, taking in his familiar cap and noting the way his hands were so much rougher than a typical teenage boy's hands should be at his age from playing tennis. She sighed. "Good. In all honesty, if he hadn't, I would have made you quit the team," she finally admitted.

The revelation startled both Tezuka and Ryoma, making them stare at her in shocked silence. Ryoma narrowed his eyes and when he realized that Kagome was actually being serious, he narrowed them even further. "You can't do that."

She did not so much as to falter at the tone of is voice. "I know you like tennis, Ryoma but if Sasabe remained on the team, I'm not taking a chance of you getting hurt just because you are related to me."

"He never hurt me before." Wisely, the young prodigy chose not to let his cousin know that despite his words he had always been a bit weary of the still-mysterious man, even before Kagome's arrival. He had thought it was because Sasabe was taking Taka-senpai's place in the Regular's spot but now that he gave it more thought, perhaps it wasn't so simple, after all.

Kagome huffed. "Because he never knew you were related to me."

"It's not like he threatened to hurt you," he countered, referring to the confrontation they had with the man yesterday after the match.

"Well," Kagome spat, getting angry. Her earlier cheeriness had all but vanished, leaving a tense anger in its wake. "The thing is I don't know exactly _what _he wants from me. And I'm sorry if I believe that your health and life is more important to me than your love for tennis but in the end I would have made you quit if he didn't."

"I don't think Sasabe would harm Echizen in any way," Tezuka cut in. Kagome narrowed her eyes and pursed her lips in annoyance. Tezuka continued on before she could interrupt. "He quit the team yesterday, immediately after your conversation." Her eyes narrowed further, this time in suspicion as she wondered if it was just her or was his choice of words implying that he had actually overheard the conversation yesterday.

"You don't know Naraku," Kagome muttered at last.

"His father?"

"I guess you could say that," Kagome said, jaw muscle twitching at the reminder. She looked at the older male in the eye for a moment before sighing. "I don't know how much Ryoma told you, but it's obvious that the situation's a lot more serious than you—either of you—will ever imagine." She threw her book bag onto the couch and pulled out a cell-phone, twirling the attached strap between her fingers. "And I don't care what you guys think or that he has already quit the team. Stay _away _from Sasabe."

Ryoma frowned, obviously not used to having someone—besides Buchou—order him around like that. Was _this _what Sota felt like, having an older sister and all? "I don't ca—"

"Because _this,"_ Kagome emphasized, reaching down before either male could react and pulled off her shirt, "is what you get when you get in Naraku's way."

The first thing he noticed was the strange star-shaped scar decorating her side. Tezuka, not unfamiliar with scars had thought _that _particular one was quiet gruesome but it was nothing compared to the scars that Higurashi meant to show them. She turned around; flipping her long hair over her shoulder and Tezuka was greeted with three long, ropey scars that ran diagonally down her back. And the only way Tezuka could imagine Higurashi getting those scars were if someone—Naraku, he presumed—attempted to turn Higurashi into ribbons.

Even Echizen, whose expression usually ranged from amusement to boredom and just plain asleep looked utterly horrified. "What… what happened?"

Tezuka gave the scars another look over and for the first time since he met the young woman, took a good, hard look at Higurashi's body. He had noticed the little scars before, such as the ones on her hands and knees but had assumed it was simply because she was clumsy. Now, he was beginning to notice the scars that run up and down both her arms and legs. They were too long and narrow to be from simple falls—unless, of course, she fell on a knife or something. Not to mention the smaller—more unnoticeable—ones that littered her back.

He had thought Higurashi was pretty before and supposed that she always would be. She still is, of course, but her appearance, he noticed was less of a delicate type of beauty and more like a war-hardened, exotic beauty. No wonder everyone else was so attracted to her; there was nothing about her that people were used to no matter their background. Talk about not being like anyone else.

Whatever courage it took the young woman to pull off her shirt seemed to have fled her in those seconds and Tezuka watched as a light warm flush spread across her face. She pursed her lips stubbornly and slid her shirt back over her head and into place, smoothing out any wrinkles. "Just a demon that he decided to send our way," she explained and grew silent for the next moment as if lost in thought. "But that's not the point," she said, catching Echizen's gaze and holding it. "The reason—the _only _reason I got away with just this was because Inuyasha was there to protect me. It could have been a lot worst."

_Worst? _For a brief moment, Tezuka wondered what she meant by that and then remembered the scars and oh gods! How bad were the wounds when they were fresh? She could have died! Whatever _thing _the Naraku guy had sent after her was sent with the intention of _killing _her. And to think Sasabe may or may not be related to the guy.

"So," Higurashi continued. "Just stay away from Sasabe until I find out exactly what he wants. And since he wants all together, according to Sesshomaru, Inuyasha's coming back to Japan in a week or so… so wait until then, all right? Then ask him back onto your team if you want." She looked at the cell phone in her hands—it was Echizen's, Tezuka noticed—and sighed. "Anything else before I report this to Sesshomaru?" She visibly deflated. "He is _so _not going to be happy with me."

"My arm," Tezuka said. "I would like to know the actual situation surrounding my arm."

Higurashi blinked in surprise. "Didn't Ryoma explain?"

Tezuka faltered slightly. "Echizen's explanations were… less than satisfactory," he answered carefully. "He told me of your… adventures and reasons why Sasabe may have quit the team." Tezuka imagined the entire story to be much more lengthy and wordy than the young tennis prodigy would have liked, it's no wondered he received the short version.

She blinked and then turned to glare at her cousin. Tezuka was happy to see that this particular glare was a lot less intense than the one previous. "So literally, you just told him: I traveled back in time, made enemies with Naraku. Sasabe may or may not be related to him and may or may not want to kill me."

Echizen sniffed, obviously offended. "I told him about your priestess powers too."

Higurashi groaned. It was going to be a long night.

* * *

><p>Sesshomaru flipped his cell phone shut and stared at it. Everything, he thought, was spinning wildly, <em>wildly <em>out of control. First it was the fact that everyone else seemed to be reincarnated, then it was the priestess telling her cousin, then Sasabe and now… now he had to deal with the fact that Echizen Ryoma's _tennis captain _knew.

Of all people.

Honestly.

Who the hell _is _Echizen's cousin anyway? Sesshomaru's brows furrowed and he could already feel the unpreventable headache. Was it the same human with the almost-but-not-quite demonic arm? Sesshomaru almost scoffed. He rubbed the bridge of his nose and flipped open his phone again, dialing his brother's number before pressing the speaker botton.

It took Inuyasha three actual calls to pick up: _"I'll fucking kill you!" _his half-brothers rough voice greeted sleepily. _"What the hell do you want? Do you know what time it is here?"_

Sesshomaru felt his jaw twitch and resisted the urge to comment on his brother's language. It was a wonder how he is taken seriously in the business meetings Sesshomaru sends him on. "I don't care," he replied smoothly, his voice not betraying his inner frustration. "Get on the earliest flight back," Sesshomaru ordered. And just because he knew his brother was not one to listen to him, added, "Something else arose."

Silence.

"_Naraku's incarnation is still fucking alive! What else happened?!"_

"The priestess' adventures had been revealed to Echizen's tennis captain," Sesshomaru all but sneered, feeling the last of his patience snapped.

"_Echi—who the fuck is that?"_

Sesshomaru glared at the phone. "Just get back to Japan," he ordered flatly and hung up before his brother had a chance to comment.

He gave himself a moment, rubbing the bridge of his nose, trying to sooth away his headache. And to think that he had thought chasing Naraku around five hundred years ago had been a nuisance. With a sigh, Sesshomaru got up from his seat behind his desk and made his way to the window. He breathed in deeply only to wrinkle his nose in disgust as he breathed in the contaminated air. Ah, how he missed the time when the air was untainted by human pollution.

Gazing back onto his desk, Sesshomaru eyed the paperwork with distaste. And so, without another though he jumped through the open windows, the force of his legs propelling him into the night sky. It had been months since his last hunt. Twisting his body, Sesshomaru changed directions and headed towards the mountains off in the distance instead. The seal that usually muffled his powers was released and with full senses, Sesshomaru could almost taste his very surroundings. Besides the human pollution that tainted his senses, he preferred this much more than being coped up in a house signing his name on useless sheets of paper.

He landed on top of a tree; his aura unleashed and seemed to electrify the air around him. With his keen ears, he could hear the animals below, running away from the oncoming danger. Sesshomaru grinned; animals always did have a much better sense of danger than humans. Humans thought they were so smart, thought themselves powerful. Ha! Sesshomaru looked around, sharp eyes eying the trees below him, ears listening for a worthy disturbance.

There.

Something was in the distance, a mile and a half away from him but Sesshomaru was able to pick it up. A bear, probably from the sounds of it. Fast. But Sesshomaru was faster. Gathering his aura beneath his feet, he leapt, his energy propelling him like a rocket as he dived towards the animal. It took him five seconds to reach it; he felt his eyes bleed red with adrenaline the moment his extended claws swiped through the animal. The bear fell to the ground behind him with a satisfying _thud _and Sesshomaru brough his bloody claw up to his mouth, lapping at the still warm liquid.

The salty liquid did little to quench his thirst. _Not enough, _he thought. Red eyes scanned the woods around him, looking, listening for another prey. The leaves somewhere behind him rustled from something—not the wind—and Sesshomaru took off again. His other claw sliced through the warm flesh of a deer before the animal even had a chance to react. Sesshomaru frowned, gazing at the carcass with tinted red eyes. _No, _he thought, _still not enough._

The lights of the city below caught his eye and Sesshomaru paused, frowning thoughtfully. When was the last time…? Not since Inuyasha, he knew, but even that was months ago. He looked around; the fool breeze on his skin, the scent of blood from his previous two kills was enough to make the blood in his own veins course with fire. But he needed more.

He grinned.

It took him all but five minutes to reach his destinations. Licking his lips in anticipation, Sesshomaru took a deep breath to calm himself. He gathered his aura around himself and compact it, feeling the illusion covering him like a second skin. Sesshomaru wiped his hands onto his black yukata—which thankfully masked the blood of his previous kills—and scratched the dried blood from his skin. He could still feel his heart pounding underneath his chest and not wanting to waste any more time fussing over his appearance, Sesshomaru raised his hand and rang the doorbell.

It was Echizen Nanjiroh that answered the door, eyeing Sesshomaru with a raised eyebrow. It took him three seconds to break into a wide grin, teeth flashing in the moonlight. "Kagome!" he bellowed, "your boyfriend's here!"

"I don't have a boyfriend!" the priestess yelled back from somewhere in the house.

Before Sesshomaru could say anything, the man grabbed him and dragged him into the warm of the house. It smelt of food. But more importantly, Sesshomaru could feel the blood running underneath the skin of the hand that was currently wrapped around his arm.

Giving his head a slight shake—it would not do to kill this man no matter how annoying Sesshomaru thought he was—and allowed himself to be manhandled into the dining room. The first thing Sesshomaru noticed, surprisingly was not the priestess but Echizen's tennis captain, looking very uncomfortable sitting between the priestess and Echizen himself. The next thing was the priestess' horrified face as she took notice of his person.

"Sesshomaru!" she squeaked, jumping up. "What are you doing here?"

Sesshomaru turned his gaze towards her, his illusion-induced brown eyes locking into her blue ones. He was still barely in control, the hunt still freshly engraved in his very being; his blood was still rushing and his heart still pounding. Even Echizen, with what little and untrained holy power he had could probably see the uncontrollable shimmer of his seal.

"Priestess," Sesshomaru greeted.

Kagome paused. Sesshomaru's voice was a lot rougher than usual.

And then, much to her horror, Nanjiroh immediately deemed that his sex voice. With a whoop, Nanjiroh gave Sesshomaru a hard pat on the back, "Way to go, man! You must a beast in bed with that voice of yours."

Kagome paled further. "Uncle. Stop. Please."

Sesshomaru paid the man none of his attention. "Come, priestess."

"Eh? What? Is something wrong?"

Sesshomaru tilted his head. "Fight me."

Kagome stared, not getting it. "What?"

"Fight me."

She continued to stare, not believing her ears. "You," she said slowly. "You want me to… fight… you?"

Sesshomaru narrowed his eyes, brown eyes flashing gold for a brief moment. "Yes."

The priestess looked him over again, noticing for the first time how not completely in control the demon lord was. Despite the seal Sesshomaru had placed around his body, Kagome could still make out the dried blood underneath his fingernails. He was a demon through and through, Kagome knew. To be sealed up within a human body and living in the twenty-first century where demons are considered nothing more but monsters under children's beds... She sucked ina breath; the only outlet Sesshomaru probably has is Inuyasha who probably annoys and frustrates Sesshomaru more than his life already did and Shippo who's a demon probably a thousand years his junior—not that she was better by any means…

"Fine," Kagome answered, placing her chopsticks down.

"The backyard's pretty isolated," Nanjiroh offered. "And big enough."

Kagome blinked, turning her attention towards her uncle who winked at her in response. "I don't want to know," she mumbled finally with a shake of her head. She gave Sesshomaru one last pointed look before heading upstairs in order to retrieve her bow.

**The next two chapters shouldn't take that long to come out. I have the first draft typed, I just need to retype it a couple more times, fixing words and stuff.**


	17. First Strike

**Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha, Prince of Tennis or any of its characters.**

New Beginnings  
>[17] First Strike<p>

"He asked questions," Sesshomaru said, not looking in Tezuka's direction. "You answered. He is already involved." He extended his arm out in front of him, gathering his massive amount of demonic energy and centering it. So condensed was the energy, it was even visible to the average human eye and once satisfied with the amount, Sesshomaru reached forward, wrapping his hand around the hilt of a familiar sword. He pulled it out and continued, "He may as well witness and understand what he is up against."

"Oh," Kagome breathed softly, taking a step forward. "That's Tensaiga!" She reached forward but hesitated. Looking up at the demon lord through thick lashes, Kagome asked, "May I?"

Nodding, Sesshomaru placed the heirloom into her trembling hands and watched her run her fingers up and down its length. Although the passage of time was obviously much longer for him than it was for her, it was her journey—her year of isolation—that was harder. He at least had people throughout the years that understood but the priestess was alone. She was thrust back into a world she didn't belong in anymore and had no one to share her experiences with.

The blade's energy pulsed against the priestess' and she giggled at the feeling before handing it back to Sesshomaru. "Here," she said, cheeks flushing with happiness at the mere sight of the blade.

He eyed her for another moment before turning his attention towards their audience making up of the two Echizens and the tennis captain. Thrusting Tensaiga into the ground he said, "As long as you do not step in front of the sword, your safety will be guaranteed." He stared at them, eyeing each individual face for a moment, stepping away only once he was sure they understood just how serious his words were.

"Stupid uncle," the priestess grumbled as she made her way towards the other end of the field across from him. "Everyone's hiding secrets from me. Next thing I know, Naraku's probably going to end up being my dad or something."

Sesshomaru snorted softly in amusement. He was unsurprised that the older tennis player knew more than he let on. When he had first met the older Echizen, he had thought there was something more to the man. "Are you ready?" he asked, fingers twitching in anticipation.

"As ready as I will ever be," the priestess replied. Her eyes snapped forward, gazing into his brown orbs with a look of steel that was only reserved for battles.

He smirked, shedding his seal; the illusion cloaking his body slid off, giving off a faint shimmer as it did so. From behind him Sesshomaru heard a soft intake of breath and his smirk widened. There was a time when just his appearance was enough to send humans scattering into the wind like rodents and with the return of the priestess and rebirth of demons, that time will come once again.

Sesshomaru watched as the priestess took in a calming breath as if to calm her nerves. He knew what she was thinking. Assuming that she was only a replacement for his half-brother, the priestess believed that she's only an outlet for his smothered instincts and that he was only using her to vent out his frustrations. Because of this, he wouldn't go all out when fighting her. This wasn't true. In truth, Sesshomaru didn't think he would be able to escape unscathed if he didn't went all out on the priestess. She had a way of exceeding one's expectation of her. Her powers have grown considerably since he had first seen her, it wasn't going to be an easy spar, whether he went easy on her or not.

The moment she notched in arrow into the string of her bow, Sesshomaru struck. Moving faster than the human eye could follow, he was in front of her in an instant. She was human and Sesshomaru didn't expect her to react. He wanted to land a blow and show her that he wasn't going to hold back. Claws extending, he forced his poison into the surface of his skin and then pushed them out. His whip lashed out crashing into the barrier with a crackle.

Kagome gasped. With a grimace she spun around, strengthening the barrier around her as she did so. Now knowing that Sesshomaru was serious, more serious than she had first thought he would be she pushed her powers to meet his poison. Pink sparks danced around her, eating away at his poisonous whip, forcing the demon lord to pull back.

Satisfied but surprised that the priestess hadn't gotten rusty, Sesshomaru struck again. This time in a more bodily attack; he threw himself at her, claws extended and long silver hair trailing behind him. He gathered his demonic energy around his hand and with it, pierced through her barrier. As powerful as she was, he had hundreds of years of experience. Clutching his teeth at the pain of her powers slowly attempting to purify him, Sesshomaru forced himself forward. He would be lying to himself if he said that he didn't find this exhilarating. Even sparing against his brother for the past five hundred years paled in comparison to the spar he was having right now. It had been centuries since he had been in this kind of fight; the kind that brought all his baser instincts to the surface.

Fight or flight.

Kill or be killed.

This was survival.

The moment his claws pierced her barrier, Kagome was already ready for him. With a grunt, she threw herself to the side, dodging certain death by mere centimeters. Claws slicing into the side of her cheek, Kagome paid it no mind despite the explosion of pain as his poison clashed with her powers. Pink sparks exploded, surrounding half her face, attempting to purify the poison from entering any deeper into her body. Kagome yanked her arrow from its notched position and spun around on her feet to get a better stand. She threw herself at him, throwing all her weight forward and she thrust the arrow into Sesshomaru. Piercing through the thin fabric of Sesshomaru's outfit, their captive audience watched with horror as it lodged itself into the man's shoulder.

The demon lord staggered backwards away from the priestess who cupped her cheeks, forcing her powers into the cut, more worried about the poison in her system than the actual wound itself. She watched as Sesshomaru hissed, his fangs extending and red bleeding into his eyes as he brought a hand up to the arrow. The holy energy surrounding the weapon crackled against Sesshomaru's hand the moment of contact. Without so much as a grunt, he yanked the arrow back out and threw it to the side before turning his complete attention back towards the priestess.

"Aw shit," Kagome whispered. The moment Sesshomaru's eyes tinted red, she knew. Sesshomaru had allowed himself to be wounded on purpose. She should have known he was more like his brother than he admitted. This spar… this fight… he was here for the thrill. He enjoyed putting his life in danger and coming out victorious. He wanted to let his instincts run free, he wanted to relive the federal era. Kagome steeled herself against an attack she knew was coming. Tossing a lock of hair behind her shoulder, Kagome could only hope that Sesshomaru doesn't end up shedding his humanoid form; there was only so much room in the backyard. Not to mention, no barrier—no matter how strong—was going to stop Sesshomaru's true form.

Sesshomaru jumped towards her again, figure blurring with speed as he moved. Sucking in a breath, Kagome narrowed her eyes in concentration. Knowing that she was never going to physically see him, she forced herself to seek out his aura. Feeling an explosive aura appear behind her, Kagome threw herself away from it. Unfortunately, her human speed was no match to his superior one and she cried out in surprise as familiar claws cut into her flesh.

"Fuck," she swore, Inuyasha's vocabulary ingrained deeper into her own than she originally thought it did. This cut was also much deeper than the one he had inflecting on her cheek. Kagome's side hit the ground but despite the stars she began seeing upon impact, she forced herself to keep moving, rolling away from him. They might have only been sparing but Kagome wasn't sure if Sesshomaru would actually prevent himself from killing her even if he could. He did, after all, have Tensaiga handy.

Digging her hands into the soft ground, Kagome grabbed a handful of earth and threw it in Sesshomaru's direction. Distracted from the surprise attack, Sesshomaru hesitated only for a moment but it was enough time for Kagome to roll to her knees, notching another arrow into her bow as she did so. By the time the demon lord had blinked the dirt from her eyes and looked over in her direction, Kagome was ready.

His eyes widened in surprise; the priestess was a lot faster than he had expected. She let go of the notched arrow, her powers propelling it to go so fast that even with his demonic speed, Sesshomaru was unable to completely dodge the attack.

She had aimed for his heart, he realized and it was only thanks to his speed that it only managed to lodge itself into his wounded shoulder. Sesshomaru grunted in pain as the holy-energy infused arrow lodged itself half-way, reopening his already healing wound. Much to his further surprise, the holy energy, upon impact, spread through his body, trying to purify his very being into dust. If he was a lessor demon, there would have been nothing left. The priestess' powers definitely had not diminished since he had last seen her, if anything she is more powerful now than ever before. The powers she had forced into the arrow was enough to bring him to his knees.

Sesshomaru panted, condensing his energy within himself trying to chase away hers. The marking that decorated his cheeks and various areas throughout his body turned jagged and the pounding of his heart increased in speed until he could hear nothing but the blood rushing in his ears. Without his pelt, this was the closest he was going to get to transforming. This, he thought was what has been missing for the past five hundred years.

* * *

><p>Whatever Tezuka was expecting, this certainly wasn't it. When Wakagami had first… ordered—for the lack of a better word—Higurashi to fight him, he was expecting more of a spar. With rules. No real harm done to the body. Something that would be stopped at the first sight of blood. He most certainly wasn't expecting Wakagami's sharp-looking nails attempting to pierce a hole through Higurashi's stomach or Higurashi's arrows <em>actually <em>piercing a hole in Wakagami's body. This was something straight out of the fantasy channels!

The aura that Wakagami was further unleashing felt familiar in ways that made him uncomfortable. It made his arm tingle in response, pulsing as he watched he fight in front of him. If his arm was actually "demonic" as Higurashi told him it was, did that mean it'll end up looking like Wakagami's? Claws and markings and all?

Tezuka forced himself to pull his gaze away from the two superpowers and to the two Echizens sitting nearby. Echizen-sama was half-sitting half-lying down in a relaxed manner, a goofy grin decorating his lips as if this was an everyday occurrence. From Higurashi's reaction earlier, Tezuka didn't think that she expected her uncle to be in on her secret but from his nonchalant attitude of the entire situation, Echizen-sama most certainly was. So was Echizen-san, now that he thought about it, who had only smiled and nodded when Wakagami first demanded Higurashi to fight him like she had expected it all along. The entire Echizen family… honestly.

It was only Echizen Ryoma himself who reacted to the situation like any other person would have; with disbelief. Or, at least, with as much disbelief as an Echizen was capable of expressing. Wide eyes with only a _hint _of surprise was the only indication Echizen gave as he stared at the fight between Higurashi and Wakagami.

Wakagami pulled his arm back again and Tezuka almost flinched as the demon's green poison shot out from under his fingertips. It dripped onto the ground and Tezuka watched with fascination as the grass underneath sizzled and burned. Inui must never get ahold of the poison, Tezuka thought, shuddering at the possibilities of new Inui juice.

Green smoke appeared to spread out from Wakagami and Tezuka found himself having to resist the urge to pull back, further away from the fight. Fortuantely, the moment the green smoke came near the audience, the sword Wakagami had struck into the ground earlier gave off an eerie glow, preventing the poisonous fog anywhere closer.

"You think if he keeps doing that," Echizen-sama commented, "he'll clear enough grass and we can build another tennis court out back?"

"Too close to the first one," Echizen replied. "He'll have to clear out further back."

Pause.

"I guess you're right."

Honestly, Tezuka didn't know what was weirder: The fact that Higurashi was not exaggerating the least bit when she told him her story or the fact that the Echizens were more interesting in building another tennis court than the supernatural fight that was taking place in front of their eyes.

"How did you know about Kagome?" Echizen asked, eyeing his father from the corner of his eyes.

Nanjiroh frowned, looking as if he wasn't going to answer. With a sigh, he finally said, "Well, Kagome's always been special."

Echizen stared.

"Ever since she was born she always had the ability to see things other people couldn't." He frowned thoughtfully and continued, "Well, according to your mom, all babies can do that but Kagome never lost her ability. And there was also that one time that I hurt my knee and man, I thought I was never going to be able to walk again but she touched it and kissed it," he winked as he said this, "and gave it a little prayer. After that it was as good as new." With a sigh, Nanjiroh leaned back and pulled up a piece of grass, placing it into his mouth and chewed on it. "Of course, it could have all been a coincidence and everything. But when Sota—Kagome's younger brother," he added for Tezuka's benefit. "When Sota was born, he was actually a still born and it only took one touch from Kagome and he was alive and kicking. Kicked the glasses right off the doctor's face if I recall correctly."

And Tezuka thought her adventures began when she fell down her shrine's well.

"So when we were told she was starting getting really sick her last year of middle school, we knew something was off. "Like your mom always says, "Kagome meant for something bigger.'"

Ryoma paused. "You know… Sesshomaru?"

Nanjiroh shrugged. "Seen him around once when I was a kid."

Ryoma wrinkled his nose. "He _is _old," he mumbled.

"You remember his face from a single encounter?" Tezuka asked.

Nanjiroh snorted. "Couldn't forget it even if I tried. It was back when Rinko was chasing me," he said proudly, his tone making Tezuka believe otherwise. "She wouldn't stop staring and kept telling me that his eyes were gold." He gave the demon a look-over. "Guess that's true. Anyway, when Kagome became friends with him during her visits, we knew something was up especially since he was just a kid back then." The demon flew towards the priestess again with another attack, moving too fast to be seen. Nanjiroh turned towards his son and Tezuka with a serious expression. "Think I could take him in tennis?"

Wisely, Tezuka chose not to comment. Instead, he returned his attention back to the spar in front of him and winced upon seeing Higurashi's bleeding form. Various new cuts littered her body and he had no doubt in his mind that they were going to leave a scar upon healing. The demon, on the other hand appeared to be perfectly fine, the wounds he had mere minutes ago were completely healed as far as Tezuka could tell.

Wakagami and Higurashi charged at each other again. Wakgami slipped past her pink sparks, clawed hand darting out and catching the young woman by her throat despite his obvious pain he had to go through in order to do. Tezuka's eyes widened as Wakagami lifted her off the ground, a satisfying look in his blood-red eyes. As Higurashi gasped for breath, it took everything Tezuka had to not say something. Even Echizen-sama sat up in alarm. And just when Tezuka was about to open his mouth to say something, the pink shimmer that surrounded Higurashi expanded, crackling as it touched Wakagami before imploding inwards, becoming white in color.

The demon was forced backwards from the energy of the blast. He caught himself, twisting in midair and managing to land on his feet. Higurashi, on the other hand did not manage to land onto the ground as gracefully, instead crumbling in a heap. She choked, sputtering as she gasped for breath, her hands at her throat. From the corner of his eyes, he noticed Echizen tensing up, his hands fisting around the grass beneath him. It was obvious he wasn't the only one wanting to stop the fight already.

A low rumble vibrated the air around them. It took Tezuka a second to figure out it was coming from Wakagami. The demon was growling, the sound low and foreign to his ears. If he had thought the demon was frightening before, it was nothing compared to what he thought of the demon now. Even with the claws and fangs, Tezuka had considered Wakagami to be fairly human-looking but with the continued elongation of both features, it was becoming less and less human.

Higurashi rolled herself into an upright sitting position, immediately picking up her weapons again and notching yet another arrow into her bow. Tezuka watched as she infused the arrow with so much holy energy that the arrow itself turned white, radiating with power. She narrowed her eyes, aiming her weapon at the demon and shifted her center of gravity for a better position. Unfortunately, her left foot caught the uneven ground and she fell down with a yelp, releasing her hold on her string in surprise.

Immediately Wakagami caught the misfired arrow between two fingers just inches from his head. The red bled out from his eyes and he turned his attention towards Higurashi. "That could have killed me."

She groaned, the sound muffled by the ground. "Shut up."

Wakagami tilted his head. "Isn't this how you killed Naraku?"

Higurashi lifted her head from the ground, a touch of dirt marked her nose. "I said shut up!" With another groan she flopped herself over and laid on the ground. "That was the best work out I had since Naraku."

Tossing the arrow to the side, Tezuka watched as Wakagami slowly made his way towards the priestess. "Really?" the demon murmured. "That long?"

Thankfully the match appeared to be over; the two opponents taking their well-deserved break and the Echizens feeling much too lazy to move from their current spot. Tezuka, on the hand, never felt more awkward. Should he sit there doing nothing? Or should he get up, thank them for the dinner and his first supernatural fight and head back home as if it was the most natural thing in the world?

Higurashi hummed in agreement before sitting up with a moan. "I'm sore all over," she complained. She looked up at Wakagami, a slight flush coloring her face. "Could you heal me? Like last time?" she asked, looking herself over. There were fresh cuts and bruises all over her body. Her outfit had also been shredded.

Wakagami raised a single eyebrow, as if questioning her.

Following the demon's line of gaze, everyone found themselves staring at the bloody cut across the top of Higurashi's breasts. Tezuka swallowed hard, remembering the last time Higurashi's would had all but disappeared, healed after Wakagami had… licked her would, leaving not even a scar.

Flushing harder, Higurashi jutted her chin out stubbornly. "I give you full permission to spit on me."

Wakagami huffed in amusement.


	18. Hint of Spring

**Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha, Prince of Tennis or any of its characters.**

**New Beginnings  
><strong>**[18] Hint of Spring**

While the world was busy reintroducing demons, Tezuka was busy writing and rewriting names into blank boxes for the ranking matches next week. Losing a Regular so late in the season is never a good thing and it made the task a lot harder than usual. He had thought about cursing Higurashi but then remembered the three ropey scars that had decorated her back and thought better of it. Not to mention the so-called "spar" she had with Wakagami.

"Our next match is with Hyotei," Fuji commented, voice soft and breath tickling Tezuka's ear.

The tennis captain forced himself to remain completely calm as if he was expecting the tennis genius' presence. It was only out of sheer will and the fact that he had known Fuji for two years did he manage to succeed. It wouldn't do to show one's weakness in front of a man like Fuji who took it upon himself to learn everyone's weakness and somehow use it against them in order to amuse himself. "Fuji," Tezuka greeted, his tone clipped in annoyance.

"Saa," Fuji sighed, amused. "And to think I wanted to surprise you."

Tezuka was not impressed. "What do you want? I have work to finish."

"Of course you do," Fuji agreed and took a seat across from Tezuka who was currently reminding himself to remain as calm as possible. "It's just that… well… you see, we've been thinking…" When Tezuka didn't comment, Fuji's lips twitched upwards in amusement. "You've been acting weird lately," he continued. "But since she's so popular, it's no surprise, really. It's hard not being the only one with a crush on Higurashi-san, ne?"

Unable to help himself, Tezuka's mouth dropped opened slightly in shock. "What?"

"Your crush on Higurashi-san?" Fuji repeated, smiling teasingly, his eyes still closed. "Everyone has noticed; you didn't think you were hiding it, did you? You've been staring at her every chance you get."

It was true that Tezuka's gaze had been drifting in Higurashi-san's direction more so than usual—she has, after all, always been an unusual person even before he found out her secretes—but it was most certainly not because he had a crush on her! Only days ago she had revealed to him that humans weren't the only above-intelligent creatures on earth and that the world may or may not be ending. Of course he was going to stare at her! He was still trying to process everything! "I do not have a crush on her," Tezuka protested firmly.

"Of course not," Fuji agreed, blue eyes sliding open. Tezuka had to resist the urge to flinch and wondered if it was better to pretend he did, after all. "That's what I told them. After all, we both know the real person you like is he—"

"Fuji!" Tezuka said, his voice sharp.

"Saa," Fuji chuckled, eyes sliding closed again. "You're absolutely no fun at all."

There were only a few times in his life in which Tezuka ever panicked. He was usually so level-headed about everything that even when his arm gave out back in middle school, he was more worried about the outcome of the match than his own arm knowing that it would heal—it may take months, perhaps but ultimately, it would heal. The only times Tezuka _does _panic was when Fuji was involved. No, seriously, Tezuka was pretty sure the other tennis player was the reason behind ninety percent of his panic attacks.

The question, however, was how? How in the world had Fuji found out? Tezuka had kept it a secret hidden so well that he hadn't even confirmed the identity of his crush to _himself_, much less anyone else. So how, how, _how _had the genius found out? Did he act different? Did he somehow accidently allowed it to slip? How could he have gotten so careless?

Lips pressing in a thin line, Tezuka gathered the papers with the ranking boxes and slipped them into his folder. "I'm leaving," he announced, voice tight.

"Of course," Fuji replied, as if the stiffness in the captain's form was not his fault. "Would you like to head home together?"

"No."

With his two packs slung over a shoulder, Tezuka breezed past the tennis genius, not caring that he was being unusually rude. Tezuka honestly didn't think he would be able to handle Fuji on top of everything else that was going on. When he was satisfied that Fuji was not following him, Tezuka stepped outside the school building and allowed himself a breath of fresh air.

Instead of heading home like he should have, Tezuka found himself making his way towards a familiar tennis court. He slipped both his school and tennis bag from his shoulder, placing them carefully on the ground next to the fence before pulling his tennis racket out. A flash of brown caught his eye and he turned towards the bracelet Higurashi-san had given him. How was it that something so simple and innocent was able to hold back something that made up something as deadly as Wakagami's very being?

Tezuka got up, exhaling deeply as he gave his arm an experimental flex as he made his way towards the abandoned court. Without an opponent, Tezuka could do nothing but practice serves but even that was enough to make him forget about the current reasons to all his stress. He took a breath, throwing the tennis ball high into the air and served, striking it with more force than necessary. A crackle filled the air and Tezuka looked down with a frown, staring at the bracelet. Higurashi had told him that it would hold back whatever was taking over his arm but Wakagami had also stated _it _was getting stronger and the bracelet would be rendered useless sooner or later.

It had only been a few days since he had first gotten the bracelet. Had the so-called demonic energy been taking over his arm sooner than anticipated?

His frowned deepened. Keeping an eye on the bracelet, Tezuka reached into his pocket for another ball. He served again, a familiar, yet unnatural tingle danced around his wrist as he struck the ball. Electrifying crackles filled the air and Tezuka was so distracted by it, he did not notice a second figure on the court, opposite of him, hitting his serve back with ease. Tezuka exhaled sharply as the ball hit the ground with a loud _crack_.

He looked up, raising his eyebrows slightly in question. "Echizen," he greeted.

"Buchou."

They stood there, staring at each other awkwardly for a moment. Well, Tezuka certainly felt it was awkward… Echizen, on the other hand, looked as nonchalant as always, a small smirk decorating his lips. Tezuka cleared his throat, "What are you doing here, Echizen?"

"Kagome's boyfriend's over," he answered, reaching out and picked up a stray tennis ball with is racket. "He's even louder and more annoying than my dad."

Tezuka raised his eyebrows. He had seen the way Echizen treated his father and even heard him complaining about the former tennis pro on more than one occasion. For him to consider someone more annoying than Echizen Nanjiroh was quiet astonishing. He was also pretty sure that Echizen was not talking about Wakagami. The older man—no, demon—was probably the quietest person he had ever met. But if it wasn't him, Tezuka couldn't think of anyone else, not that he was completely familiar with all of Higurashi's acquaintances. But if it wasn't Wakagami, Momoshiro was the only other possible person that he knew of. Momoshiro was interested in Higurashi and if anyone was louder than Echizen-sama, it would definitely be—

"Buchou," Echizen said, bouncing the tennis ball on the edge of his racket. "A match?"

Tezuka had to fight in order to keep a smile off his face. "One set."

Echizen was grinning fully now. "Rough or smooth?" he asked, catching the ball and stuffing it into the depths of his pocket.

"Rough."

Echizen spun the racket and watched as it landed in Tezuka's favor. "Che," he scoffed, picking his racket up again.

They got into position and Tezuka could feel his hearth pounding in anticipation. Every time he played with Echizen, it felt like fire was coursing through his very body, leaving ashes in its wake, readying itself for yet another rebirth. Tezuka didn't think he would ever grow tired of playing Echizen and hoped that they'll never stop playing.

He served, throwing everything he had into the ball. Echizen expected nothing less and it would be an insult to the younger man if he held back. Tezuka was not surprised when Echizen reached the ball faster than he thought possible, returning it with a return ace. The ball blazed past him, leaving him unable to react and a smudge on the court upon impact. Tezuka stared at the smudge and narrowed his eyes; Echizen's shots were getting stronger.

Tezuka served again and Ryoma's return shot was even faster than the first one but this time, Tezuka was ready. He grunted underneath the weight of the ball but forced himself to hold onto his racket. His arm muscles rippled dangerously but Tezuka sent the ball back over the net, doubling both its speed and power.

Another crackle filled the air and this time, Tezuka could feel a sharp sting as pink sparks shot to the surface of the bracelet and coming in contact with his skin. He ignored it; he was already used to pain shooting up his arm when he was playing tennis. Besides, a little bit of pain was no reason to call of a match with Echizen.

Forty minutes into the match and Tezuka couldn't remember why he had come to the tennis court in the first place. In his current world, while he was playing a match with Echizen, demons no longer existed; Fuji no longer knows his secrets and decided who to put in the ranking matches no longer mattered. In this world, all that mattered was a ball, two rackets, a net and Echizen. Nothing else existed.

At match point—in his favor—Tezuka dashed forward, racket lowered and ready. Echizen's eyes widened, understanding flashed through his gaze and Tezuka _knew _the younger man had a good idea about what he was about to do. He dashed forward but it was already too late; Tezuka had already sent the ball back over the net.

Missing by mere inches, Tezuka watched as Echizen eyed the ball, watching it roll backwards into the net. When his gaze traveled upwards and held Tezuka's, the tennis captain was all of suddenly reminded of their very first match. His imagination went on haywire and he could feel his heart, still pounding hard against his chest in ways that had nothing to do with the adrenaline flowing throughout his body.

"Buchou," Echizen breathed, panting hard.

"Good game," Tezuka said, still breathing hard as Echizen slowly climbed back up onto his feet. He reached a hand out over the net.

"Mada mada dane," was the tennis prodigy's only response but he said it with a familiar smirk that made Tezuka's chest tighten with tension. Nevertheless, Echizen also reached out, clasping Tezuka's outstretched hand within his own.

Upon contact, another crackle filled the otherwise quiet air, loud and piercing. A single blue spark danced out from Echizen's hand and onto Tezuka's. The spark sent sharp pain as it came in contact with Tezuka's skin who hissed at the surprise, grip tightening around Echizen's smaller hand. They stared at the spark and as if it were a catalyst, the spark called forth others, pink in color. They crackled around the bracelet, and with one final _crack, _the barrier surrounding the bracelet gave out and the thin material snapped.

Hands still interlocked, Echizen stared at the fallen bracelet for a moment. Finally, he looked back into Tezuka's eyes. "Kagome's not going to be happy.," he said.

"Ah."

Echizen frowned. "Che, she said it would hold for a couple months. It didn't even last two weeks."

* * *

><p>"Let's just kill him. We don't need another Naraku."<p>

Sesshomaru scoffed. "Foolish half-breed. If Sasabe wanted to make an enemy of us, he would have attacked us beforehand, not warn us of upcoming danger."

"Well," Miroku interrupted. "He didn't exactly _warn _us, per say but I do see your point. Besides, Inuyasha, he seemed to know more about what's going on than any of us."

Inuyasha huffed. "The bastard probably wants us all together so he doesn't have to go around hunting each of us down."

"Obviously."

Inuyasha glared, "Yo, asshole—"

"Inuyasha," Kagome interrupted. _"Please."_

"Feh."

Sango rolled herself into a more comfortable position on the couch. "We're going to have to meet him, that's obvious. And from what I heard from Kagome, if Sesshomaru's with us, we won't have to worry about getting killed if things do go wrong."

Inuyasha's eyebrows shot up. "What do you mean, you heard from Kagome?"

Kagome paled as Inuyasha turned his attention towards her. "Um…"

"_Well?"_

"The priestess and I sparred," Sesshomaru inputted. His eyes held an amused glint as he took in the half-demon's shocked appearance.

"_What?" _Inuyasha whipped his head to face his half-brother. "What do you mean sparred?"

Sesshomaru gifted him with a flat look, "You honestly need me to define that word for you?"

"You fuckin' _bastard!_ That's not what I—"

"Inuyasha!" Kagome interrupted, hoping that her aunt and uncle could not hear them. Then again, Kagome was sure that Rink would probably prefer it over the dirty-talk Nanjiroh seemed so fond of. "It was just a spar! Calm down!"

Inuyasha glared for a moment, eyes darting between Kagome and his half-brother. He snickered, "Just a spar, my ass. I hope you kicked his ass, Kagome."

Kagome rolled her eyes. "No one kicked anyone's ass."

"It's quiet amazing though," Miroku murmured, catching everyone's attention. "Even if it was a light spar, I would expect some cuts and bruises on your person, my lady."

"U-uh…" Kagome stammered. "Well, of course I had some…"

Sango raised her eyebrows.

"My saliva has healing properties."

"Your saliv—" Sango flushed as the image.

"_Your saliva?"_ Inuyasha repeated with a screech, whipping his head around again. "What the hell do you mean—" He cut himself off, "Never mind, I don't want to know." He shuddered at the mere thought about Sesshomaru's saliva coming in contact with Kagome's body. He didn't need them to tell him exactly what had happened. He could do without the image, thank you.

Miroku chuckled. "Kagome-sama must be a very happy woman, indeed."

Kagome flushed even harder.

"Am I interrupting something?" a voice interrupted, making everyone direct their attention towards the two figures standing in the archway to the living room.

"Ryoma! How long have you been standing there?"

"Long enough," Ryoma said, staring at the demon lord. His face was scrunched up slightly; he had just learned something about his cousin that he didn't exactly want to know in the first place.

"It's not what you think," Kagome assured, her voice coming out in a quick rush. "Really!" Much to her continued embarrassment, her face was getting heated again, which wasn't doing much to back up her previous words. She gave a quick glance at the taller figure standing next to her cousin, his face a smooth indifference. "Tezuka-san," she greeted stiffly, hoping for a distraction.

"Higurashi-san."

"This the captain?" Inuyasha asked, sitting up, his gaze drawn to Tezuka's left hand.

Kagome glared and ignored him. "Tezuka-san, this is Inuyasha. Inuyasha, this is Tezuka-san, and yes, he is the captain."

"Keh," Inuyasha huffed with a snort. "Looks like wuss."

Tezuka blinked.

Kagome glared harder for a moment but shifted her gaze onto the floor, measuring with her eyes its sturdiness. She noticed Sesshomaru shifting away from him, realizing what she was thinking. "Sit," Kagome hissed out and watched in satisfaction as Inuyasha's face crashed into the ground, his swearwords muffled by the carpet.

Once satisfied that Inuyasha had earned his lesson, Kagome turned her attention back to her cousin and the forbidding captain standing slightly behind him. She was unsurprised to see his lack of reaction; he had, after all, not reacted when he saw Inuyasha, twitching dog ears and all. "What's up?" Kagome asked, "I thought you were going to be out later."

Ryoma turned and looked at Kagome. "Something came up," he admitted.

Kagome frowned and then narrowed her eyes in concentration. With Inuyasha and Sesshomaru in the room she was unsurprised that she hadn't felt it before but there was a third, much more faint, but unmistakable demonic aura in the room. She gasped as her eyes landed on Tezuka's naked wrist. "What happened?" she demanded. "That seal was supposed to hold for _at least_ a month.

"The seal broke?" Miroku asked in shock, sitting up.

Ryoma ignored him. "We were playing tennis."

"What kind of hell kind of tennis were you playing?" Inuyasha asked, having finally pulled himself into a sitting position. He was rubbing his nose, wincing as he hit a tender spot.

"Interesting," Miroku murmured, rubbing his chin thoughtfully.

Sesshomaru got up from his seat, making his way towards the two tennis players.

"Sesshomaru?" Kagome asked hesitantly.

The demon lord came to a stop when he was standing next to the priestess. He eyed the amber-eyed human for a moment before reaching a clawed hand towards him. Ryoma narrowed his own eyes but despite his instincts warning him away, he stood his ground, unflinchingly.

As soon as he got close enough, blue sparks jumped off Ryoma's skin and onto Sesshomaru's, attempting to warn the demon off.

"Hn."

Ryoma and Tezuka stared wide-eyed at the sparks. They had seen it before, when Ryoma had come in contact with Tezuka's hand for a handshake but they had both thought it had come from the seal somehow. To think that _Ryoma _was the one to caused it…

"You are exerting demonic energy right now," Sesshomaru said, eyeing the tennis captain. He then turned his gaze towards Ryoma, "And _you _are unable to control your own powers. Yet, they're not even making an attempt to purify him." He tilted his head. "You cousins are more alike than you think."

Tezuka blinked.

"Even more interesting," Miroku said, gleefully.


	19. Blood Seal

**Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha, Prince of Tennis or any of its characters.**

**New Beginnings  
><strong>**[19]**** Blood Seal**

"All right," Higurashi said, tying her hair up into a messy bun before rolling up her sleeves. "Take off your shirt."

Tezuka blinked; out of all the things he had expected to come out of her mouth, this most certainly wasn't it. "I beg your pardon?"

Higurashi must have realized the implicated behind her words. She blushed slightly but pressed on, "Look, your demonic energy is expanding much more quickly than I thought possible." Her gaze darkened and she leveled Tezuka with a look that made him feel like he was five again. "I'm going to need some heavy-duty seal in order to keep your _yōki _contained.

He swallowed hard. "May I ask what you're planning on doing?"

"I'm going to create a Blood Seal."

Tezuka frowned; he had absolutely no idea what a Blood Seal was, but if it was anything like her previous one, he wasn't sure he _wanted _to know. "Then the last one…"

Higurashi nodded, understanding his though process. "All seals need blood," she explained. "But not all seals are Blood Seals. Blood Seals are one of the most powerful seals in existence, right underneath Sacrificial Seals." She reached out and patted his shoulder good-heartily. "And since I'm not going to kill myself just to seal off your _yōki, _we're going to do the next best thing. I'm going to write a semi-permanent seal on your skin with my blood. And by semi-permanent, I mean that it's not going to come off unless I or another person with holy energy unseals it or someone with powerful _yōki breaks _it."

"I see," Tezuka responded, hesitantly.

"I'm going to write it on the back of shoulder, close to the source of you _yōki. _It's also less noticeable so you'll be able to wear short sleeves. And if anyone _does _see it, you could always pass it off as a tattoo or something but if you _really _want to hide it I'm sure Sesshomaru has some sort of illusion seal for that.

Tezuka nodded slowly, attempting to observe all the information he had just been given. And here he had thought that now that he knew Higurashi's secret, he would no longer be surprised at anything else when it came to her. How wrong he was…

"Blood Seals are powerful indeed," Wakagami said softly. He frowned slightly. "Have you ever attempted one, priestess?"

"No," Higurashi chirped. "But how hard could it be?"

Suddenly, Tezuka found himself wondering if it was possible to slip away unnoticed and still be polite about it. Before he even give it further thought, however, Echizen's green-black hair caught his eye and he sighed. He knew that he would be more than willing to play Higurashi's guinea pig if it meant he could continue playing tennis with the young prodigy. _The things I do for him, _Tezuka thought. With a deep breath, he turned his gaze back towards Higurashi. "Where shall I sit?"

She brightened up considerably. "Wherever you're most comfortable."

Tezuka looked around and chose to sit down in the center of the room where Higurashi would have all the space she wanted to do what she had to do. She knelt down behind him as he slid his shirt over his head and the cool air hit his skin, making him shiver. Higurashi then rubbed her hands together in a way that reminded him of Inui. Fortunately, he knew that she was only warming up her hands so he wouldn't flinch away from her upon contact.

When Higurashi laid her hand lightly onto his shoulder, it tingled against his bare flesh much like the bracelet did hours before. Although it wasn't as painful, it was uncomfortable enough that Tezuka had to consciously order himself to stay where he was. "You need to try and calm down as much as possible," Higurashi murmured softly. "I think your_ yōki _is based off emotions just like my own powers are."

Depending on how in control of her powers Higurashi is, Tezuka may or may not be purified into nonexistence. He wondered how exactly he was supposed to calm himself knowing this information.

"I like to meditate," Miroku advised helpfully from his position on the couch. And then he continued, "Thinking of the beautiful round curves on a woman's body—"

Sango, who was seated next to him easily silenced the perverted man with a swift jab to the ribs, knocking the breath out of him without even a glance. Tezuka wondered how used to it she was. "Be quiet monk," she said in a bored tone. "You don't need to taint him with your perverted mind."

Tezuka noticed Echizen glancing in the direction of the archway. He was pretty sure the young tennis prodigy was on the look-out for his father. Certainly, Echizen didn't want to two of them to meet. Ever. Tezuka didn't think he could blame him; he wouldn't want it either.

"I'm not a big meditator, myself," Higurashi said, rubbing soothing circles on his back, completely ignoring the second half of her friend's comment. Tezuka wanted to inch away from her touch, and not all of it had to do with the uncomfortable tingles coming from her. "I like to pretend to go to sleep, I end up relaxing like that."

Tezuka was pretty sure that's not how meditation worked. And despite the fact that her idea had merit, he didn't think it would work, especially with the dreams he has been having recently.

However, whether it was due to Higurashi's words or her awkward, yet soothing ministrations on his back, Tezuka found himself relaxing in the end. Honestly, he didn't actually think he was but Higurashi patted him on the back. "That's right," she said cheerfully and then extended a hand in Wakagami's general direction. "Sesshomaru, if you would please—_ow!"_

She snatched her hand back with a hiss. Wakagami must have cut her palm but Tezuka couldn't be sure; the demon had moved much too fast for his eyes to follow and much too quiet for his ears to pick up. Besides the fact that Wakagami was currently licking his bloodied claw, Tezuka wouldn't have thought anything had happened. He shuddered slightly at the sight and turned his attention away, choosing instead to concentrate on Echizen. The younger tennis player was familiar if nothing else in the room was and just the mere sight was enough to calm Tezuka down and further his resolve to get this whole Blood Seal ordeal over and done with.

"Would you please _warn _me the next time you do that?" Higurashi hissed.

"Why don't you sit _him?"_ Inuyasha demanded, a rather childish pout of his lips.

Wakagami looked amused at the thought until Higurashi responded: "I would if I could." The demon lord narrowed his eyes but didn't dignify her comment with a response. Instead he looked away with a small snort through his nose; Tezuka could see a single pointed ear twitch in annoyance.

"Kagome."

Echizen's voice, though soft was both a surprise and relief to Tezuka. "Right, right," she said. "Sorry."

Tezuka tensed again as Higurashi took a deep breath. Delicate fingers pressed into her back, sharp nails scratching characters onto the smooth surface of his skin. The tingling on his back was getting more than a little uncomfortable now but Tezuka held his position, not wanting to give up now. And if this worked out, he hoped that life could continue on as normal. Tezuka could physically feel Higurashi's blood dripping down his back and he wondered how deep the cut on her palm was and how much blood she had already lost.

He could hear Higurashi breathing behind him, her breath sounding slightly labored.

The two occupants on the couch shifted, sitting up stiffly. "Lady Kagome…" Miroku breathed, eyes wide.

"Shut up," Higurashi said. "I'm almost done."

"You're exerting too much energy!" Sango cried out. "At this rate—"

"Silence," the demon lord hissed out sharply.

"This is a Blood Seal," the other demon—Inuyasha—shot back. "Not a Sacrificial Seal!"

Although Tezuka had known something was wrong the minute Miroku had spoken up, he wasn't alarmed until the last comment. Against his better judgment, Tezuka turned his head around in an attempt to catch a glimpse of Higurashi-san What was going on? What was she doing?

"Don't move," Higurashi ordered, voice tight. "I'm almost done."

The pain on his back was almost unbearable now but Tezuka forced himself to obey her words. It seemed like forever for her to finish writing down the characters onto his back and by the time she was finished, Tezuka felt as if the back of his should had been stabbed multiple times. He couldn't remember his shoulder ever hurting this much before; the only time anything had gotten close was back in junior high during his match with Atobe.

"All done." Higurashi was out of breath, breathing hard as if she had just ran a mile.

She picked her hand off his back and the instant he did so, the stabbing pain dulled. Tezuka turned around to thank her, however, before he could get the words out, Higurashi slumped down onto him. He caught her, eyes going wide as he noticed the blood running down her arm and soaking into her shirt. He could only imagine what his back must have looked like.

"Kagome!" more than one voice called out.

He shouldn't be surprised at how much her friends cared for her but their panic and horror still caught his attention. He couldn't help but remember the time that _he _had fallen down on court in pain and how his friends had rushed towards him. The memory made something warm bloom in his chest. And of course, he also remembered that Echizen was the only one who remained seated, watching the scene played out with wide eyes. As shocked as the young prodigy must have been at the time, Tezuka knew that Echizen was the only one who understood him then. He understood Tezuka's need to continue playing the match despite his injury.

Higurashi was pale and cold underneath his touch but Tezuka noticed that despite the pink sparks of her purification powers dancing on her skin, it no longer tingled against his own or pained him in any way. He shifted her so she was in a more comfortable position and was alarmed to see that she appeared to not be breathing. "Higurashi-san?" he asked hesitantly.

"I'm fine," she muttered. "Sorry 'bout that." She pushed herself back up, swaying slightly despite being seated on the ground.

"You should have stopped!" Inuyasha snapped, voice hard. Despite his tone, Tezuka knew that the demon was only worried about the young priestess. "If it was too much to handle you should have stopped! You're going to get yourself killed one of these days."

Higurashi didn't answer. Instead she glared at the ground unseeingly, her eyebrows furrowed as if she was deep in thought. Finally, she turned her blue eyes in Tezuka's direction who just noticed that he was still holding onto Higurashi's waist. He dropped them immediately and felt himself flush.

"Strange," Miroku murmured quietly. He gave the demon lord a quick glance, taking careful notice of Sesshomaru's narrow-eyed expression. "Forgive me, Lord Sesshomaru," he said. "But even you must realize that there must be more to the situation. If Kagome-sama were to attempt to seal away _your _demonic energy, I doubt she would have been as exhausted as she is now. I fear that something else is at play here."

Wakagami thinned his lips, an action Tezuka was familiar with. "I cannot be positive," he admitted.

"Lord Sesshomaru?"

With the young priestess still lost in the depths of her thoughts, Wakagami narrowed his eyes further and turned his gaze in Tezuka's direction. "When she was sealing his demonic energy, it rose in an attempt to fight her off. He is weak, however, and in the end, it is no surprise that she won." He paused, running a hand through his hair and throwing it over a shoulder. "Despite this... For a moment, just before she sealed it off, I heard whispered promises of power."

Neither Tezuka nor Echizen had the faintest idea what he was talking about but it appeared everyone else did as they managed a collective gasp. "That means..."

"Pray it is not true," the demon lord said, looking away. "Then it would not mean anything."

"No," Higurashi said, looking up. "You're right, Sesshomaru."

"Hn."

"At first I was just fighting Tezuka-san's aura. That was easy but then when I actually started to seal it away, something else kicked in."

"The Shikon," Miroku stated.

Higurashi nodded with a wince. "Yes. I think so. And I made sure to observe it this time; it's not a fake, it's the real thing.

"Was it coming from buchou?" Echizen asked, speaking up for the first time.

Higurashi frowned. "No... There was no real direction." She closed her eyes. "It felt as if it was coming from everywhere all at once."

"What does this mean?" Sango asked worriedly.

They fell silent. Finally Higurashi lifted her gaze towards Tezuka. "Tezuka-san," she said. "Do you have Sasabe-san's number?"


	20. Hopeful

**Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha, Prince of Tennis or any of its characters.**

**New Beginnings  
><strong>**[20] ****Hopeful**

"It is _such _an honor having all of you visit my lonely self in my humble home," Sasabe drawled, a small smirk playing at his lips as he took in the group that was currently occupying his living room. He was amused but not surprised to see that every single one of them had positioned themselves in a way so that the priestess was in the heart of the group, heavily protected, away from harm. He took notice of lengthen claws from the three other demons in the room. "You are also not without weapons, I see." He was pretty sure the former demon slayer had some sort of blade hidden underneath her clothing.

"Feh, like we would trust you."

"I don't see you not," he replied immediately. "Naraku is dead and as such, I am no enemy of yours."

"Just shut up and get to the point," Shippo growled, reminding his audience exactly which demon lord he had been spending the past few centuries with.

Sasabe merely smiled, their threats, growls, and claws did not move him. If he was honest with himself, he actually found the _priestess _to be more frightening than those lot put together. He wasn't going to admit that out loud, however; demons and their delicate egos. "All right, to business, then." He crossed his legs and interlocked his fingers out in front of him as he shifted into a more comfortable position in his seat. "Tell me what you know."

"The Shikon still exists," the priestess answered swiftly.

Sasabe eyed her. It was amazing how she managed to survive, much less come out the victor of the final confrontation between his sire and herself. Petite human body, large innocent eyes, and a scatterbrain-like personality made people underestimate her, as Naraku had. While he wasn't physically present during the battle, he was not unfamiliar with her powers. "Amazing deduction," he cooed, clapping his hands. "I don't understand why you even need me."

She glared but there wasn't any weight behind it. "Look, sorry if I sound a little confuse but I thought I got rid of it five hundred years ago. I _demanded _its disappearance."

He wasn't impressed. "You must be so proud of yourself."

Before the priestess could fire back a comment, the demon lord stepped forward. "Keep this up and I will kill you and be done with it."

Sasabe stared at him for a moment. Sesshomaru's tone left no room for argument and his words were a promise he intended to keep. Although Sasabe wasn't frightened of the demon lord, he had no doubt in his mind that Sesshomaru had plans of making his death as painful as possible. In the ten minutes they had entered his house, he has somehow gotten on the demon lord's bad side. "I don't know the full story," Sasabe admitted before beginning. "I was created because Naraku felt that he needed a part of himself in the jewel in case something goes wrong. He had hoped to take over the jewel in case it falls into the hands of someone else. Unfortunately, the moment he purged half his soul into the jewel, he created a new identity, so while I do come from him and have half his soul, I am not Naraku." He sighed. "I was present during the final confrontation. I was there when you won and I was there when you put the jewel together." He paused again, eyeing the young priestess. "I was also there when you made your demand."

"Shikon, disappear," Kagome recalled, her voice but a whisper. "Cease your existence."

"Yes," Sasabe remembered. "However, if your demand was obeyed, then—being part of the jewel—should have also disappeared with it. But I didn't."

"Which means the Shikon never really disappeared," Sango said.

"I don't understand," Miroku replied, shaking his head. "The jewel _did _disappear."

"Not completely, I guess," Sasabe responded. "If it makes you feel any better, when you made your demand, I did feel slightly... disorientated, I guess. Since I was created, I've always known what was going on around me—outside the jewel, I mean. But afterwards, it felt as if I was asleep. And after _that_, the next thing I knew, I was in the cold clutch of some witch."

"So she did use the real jewel to wish away demons," Kagome said in a small voice, swallowing hard. "But the Shikon has disappeared again, hasn't it? Why are you still here?"

"Ah," Sasabe said. "And that's the important point. I was made to live inside the Shikon, so it is the Shikon where I belong. However, I am strong enough to live outside it for a limited amount of time. When the witch pulled the jewel out, I escaped and hid myself. Up until recently, I've been asleep." He leaned closer, emphasizing the importance of his next statement. "Make no mistake, Holy Priestess, Guardian of the Shikon Jewel, the Shikon _is _still out there. I can feel it call more me. My power diminishes as we speak and soon, I will not be able to resist the Shikon's call."

"You'll disappear," she breathed in horror. "That's why you told me you wouldn't last long."

Sasabe nodded in confirmation. "Kagome-sama, you are balance. You were pulled into the past in order to right a wrong that in all actuality, has nothing to do with you. Kikyo, Naraku, even the Shikon Jewel, their stories had already happened long before your arrival. Naraku was powerful and there were ways to gain power even without the Shikon. Naraku was also smart and without the manipulation and the false promises of power of the Shikon, he would have been intelligent enough to gather his support and power sloly enough that when people _do _notice he is a threat, it would have already been too late." At this, Sesshomaru snorted. Sasabe gave him a look. "Why do you think barely anyone has never even _heard _of Naraku before your arrival? It's because he wasn't stupid then. Anyway, Naraku needed to be destroyed and you were sent back in order to make sure it happened."

"And now, the witch made a wish that unbalanced the entire world which means it's Kagome-sama's duty to make sure the wrong is righted," Miroku finished, recalling the conversation in Sesshomaru's car.

Sasabe nodded.

"Why?"

Everyone turned their attention towards the priestess. Her question may have made her sound dumb to any eavesdropper but Sasabe understood the _real _question behind the word and he was sure he wasn't the only one.

"Because, Lady Kagome," Sasabe said. "The witch never died."

The muscle in Kagome's jaw twitched and she nodded stiffly in understanding. "Which means that if she managed to pull out the Shikon once, she can do it again."

"The first time she did it, the world had hope. The Holy Priestess was only five hundred years in the future, it could wait that long. However, as demons begin appearing more and more, she will notice and she will rise to power once again. And the first thing she'll do is to get rid of the one and only threat that stands between her and her utopia."

Kagome shuddered. Being the Shikon Priestess barely fazed her since she had Kikyo to help guide her. Even traveling back into the Federal Era and knowing that he needed to defeat Naraku before he went around to dominate Japan barely even fazed her since she had her friends to back her up. But this... this... knowing that she is the only thing that stands between a witch and the end of the world... well.

* * *

><p>"Atobe," Tezuka greeted, if a bit hesitantly. "What are you doing here?" The Hyotei tennis captain had never shown interest in their practice before so for him to actually <em>show up <em>was quiet surprising. Tezuka had a feeling that he was going to end his day with a migraine... And just when he thought that with Higurashi's absence, he would have a normal day.

"Well," Atobe drawled, grinning in a way that made Tezuka hope Echizen's complete attention was directed towards his current mock-match. I was hoping to spot that lovely fan of yours." He made a great show of skimming the court and sighing dejectedly when he couldn't find her.

Tezuka sighed, eyeing Echizen from the corner of his eyes. _So much for that, _he thought when Echizen's opponent scored a point with a service ace. It wouldn't have been odd—Seigaku High had good players, after all—if said opponent wasn't Horio with five years of tennis experience. So, Tezuka was not the least bit surprise when Echizen all but abandoned the mock-match, turning slowly and narrowing golden-brown eyes in Atobe's direction.

"What lovely fan?" he bit out.

"Why, the beautiful one from last time, of course. The only one worthy of having me as a _lover." _He grinned, flicking his hair out of his eyes with a quick toss of his head. "The one with that silky black hair, delightful green eyes and delicious-looking lips."

Tezuka was surprised Atobe remembered the color of Higurashi's hair—even if he did get her eye color wrong. Echizen, however, either didn't notice the mistake, ignored it, or didn't know the color of Higurashi's eye himself—which, unfortunately, was actually a high possibility. However, one didn't actually needed to know someone's eye color in order to be in love with them, as Atobe claimed to be even though Tezuka could recall the exact color and shade of Echizen's eyes.

"Leave," Echizen hissed out. "Or I will be shaving a monkey."

One day, Tezuka thought, Atobe was going to realize that Echizen's threats were not just mere words. If he gets annoyed enough, Tezuka didn't doubt that Echizen would make good on his promise. While Echizen is kinder than most people believe him to be, Tezuka knew that Echizen can be quiet ruthless when he wants to be. Tezuka is not the one for violence on the tennis court, especially after his first year in junior high but Echizen had no problem giving people black eyes using his _Twist Serve_ if he—or someone else—had been wronged.

Tezuka almost shuddered at the memory.

"Atobe," he repeated. "What are you doing here?"

Atobe sniffed, obviously offended. _"Well. _And to think I was about to extend my invitation to the likes of you."

"_Atobe."_

"Fine, fine. My fellow regulars and I will be training for the nationals in the mountains. I have a cabin up there with multiple tennis courts for our use, of course and I thought I would be generous and invite you and your team since some of you can actually play tennis." With that he flashes Tezuka what appeared to be a flirtatious grin. Tezuka actually felt his eye twitch.

"_Atobe's personal cabin?!" _someone screeched in surprise.

The tennis captain stiffened up visibly. "My invitation limits to your regulars, of course," he said, eyeing Horio distastefully. He grinned again, this time aiming it in Echizen's direction. "Unless you wish to invite that ever-lovely fan of yours."

Tezuka had a sinking feeling that Atobe had forgotten Higurashi's name. "Thank you, Atobe," he said honestly. "I think I will take you up on your offer." As annoying as Atobe is, training in the mountains against people whose style they were not used to playing everyday was good for them. There was no way Tezuka would pass the chance up.

"Of course," he only replied, quiet confidently. "I didn't think you would decline." He smirked again. "Now that I have business out of the way, where _is _that lovely fan of yours?"


	21. Beyond Imagination

**Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha, Prince of Tennis or any of its characters.**

**New Beginnings  
><strong>**[21]**** Beyond Imagination**

"That sounds like some sort of survival training," Kagome said, staring at her cousin in disbelief.

He stared back.

"Your captain does realize that you guys are... _tennis players, _right?"

"It's for endurance and stamina," Ryoma elaborated. "The monkey king has a cabin in the mountains and buchou says training in the mountains is good." Something about difference in oxygen levels, if Ryoma remembered correctly. He had stopped listening after Inui took over and began explaining the details. As if he cared about the chemicals in the air and their reaction with the human respiratory system. Or the names of the cells responsible for converting the energy taken in by the human body into usable energy.

Kagome rolled her eyes, "You guys seriously do nothing but eat, breathe, and _live_ tennis... Don't you have anything better to do?"

It was Ryoma's turn to stare at her, mirroring her earlier stare of disbelief.

"Like video games," Kagome tried. "Souta loves video games. Or maybe girls, aren't you interested in any girls?" She knew that her cousin was more than a little popular in their high school. Apparently being raised in America made him quiet exotic.

He didn't answer.

"I mean," she continued. "You're still going through puberty, aren't you?"

"Puberty," he repeated, his tone flat.

Kagome narrowed her eyes. "You do know what that is, right?" Did he fall asleep during health class? She wouldn't be surprise if he had. He had already told her how he had no trouble falling asleep in English; she wished she could say the same.

"Che." Ryoma turned his face away, eyebrows scrunching upwards in annoyance. "Of course I do. I went through a stupid three-inch growth spurt and it took me weeks to correct my reach. I almost lost a match." To make matters worst, it was a mock-match against Sanada; his eyes narrowed at the memory. At least it wasn't Atobe.

The young priestess opened and closed her mouth, repeating the gesture a couple of times, speechless. She knew that her uncle was a famous tennis player and had gotten Ryoma just as obsess with the sport as he was. Hell, he had even attempted to do the same with Kagome, but as a young girl—and even now, unfortunately—she had been much too clumsy to enjoy a game. "That's really not what I meant," she finally mumbled. "How long will you guys be mountain training, anyway?"

"Rest of the week," he replied. "We had special permission from the school."

Apparent tennis wasn't only important to the tennis players, she had almost forgotten that Seishun Academy took pride in having one of the best tennis teams in the high school circle. "Well, have fun, I guess. Work hard! Do you need help packing?"

Ryoma shrugged, "Already did."

Not convinced, Kagome graced her cousin with her infamous flat stare. "Don't tell me you only packed a change of clothes, tennis balls and your tennis racket."

"Well," he responded. "I can't very well bring Karupin with me."

Kagome stared at her cousin but she couldn't tell whether Ryoma was being serious or not. Knowing her cousin, it could go either way. "Of Ryoma," she breathed, remembering her trips to the Federal Era, "you have _so _much to learn."

* * *

><p>Momoshiro took one glance at Ryoma, fell over laughing and couldn't stop even when Tezuka turned a death glare in his direction. "Yo, Echizen!" he managed to wheeze out between breaths. "You do know that you don't actually need that many things, right?"<p>

Ryoma glared. "Kagome made me take it," he grumbled. He looked as if his back was going to give out. The backpack Kagome had packed him was about twice his own height. He didn't even know it was possible for his backpack to expand to its current size. Ryoma could only hope that it wouldn't burst open in the middle of the trip.

"I will pay," Atobe commented with a flick of his hair, "just to see you hike up the mountain carrying that."

The young tennis prodigy's glare intensified. "It's good for training."

"I'm sure it is," Atobe sneered.

"What's in it anyway, nya?" Kikumaru asked, giving the backpack a tentative poke. Usually, he would open the pack right then and there to check its contents but he had a rather horrifying vision of everything bursting out and burying him if he did so.

Ryoma shrugged, his shoulders cracking loudly as he did so. He winched. "I don't know. Food, maybe. Or a map." _My entire house._

"A map," Atobe said, scoffing at the mere idea. "Please. Who does she think I am? My regulars are already waiting in my cabin for my magnificent presence. With me leading this group of..." he eyed the Seigaku regulars with a slight sneer, "...misfits, we're absolutely _not _going to get lost. As if I need a map."

* * *

><p>They were lost.<p>

Ryoma was pretty sure that they've been lost for the past half an hour but Atobe was too proud to admit it until just a few seconds ago. He gritted his teeth, feeling the urge to dump his more than a little heavy backpack onto the ever annoying tennis captain. He would have too, if he wasn't so afraid of cracking every last bone in Atobe's body and getting sued.

"Did anyone bring a phone?" Oishi asked, worriedly.

Inui shook his head. "It wouldn't be much help even if someone did bring one. We're not going to get signal this far up a mountain."

"Did you peasants know that if you're with me you have a less chance of getting signal?" Atobe asked, completely and utterly unconcerned about their current situation. "They flee due to my great beauty."

Ryoma found himself contemplating murder. As if it wasn't bad enough that he had to carry Kagome's "survival backpack" as she had called it... He paused, blinking and gave his pack a side-glance. He didn't actually think she packed a map and even if she had, it wouldn't have mapped the mountain's non-existent routes and Atobe's stupid cabin but there must be something else in there that could be of use. He reached behind him, unzipped on of the side pockets and rummaged around for a few seconds. He managed to pull out pens and pencils, a notepad, his cellphone—which, as Inui had predicted, wasn't receiving any signal—a small bottle of lotion and pepper spray. He huffed, utterly useless.

"We should go northeastward," Tezuka said softly. "It might take a while but we're bound to meet up with a river and if we follow it upstream, we'll end up at the cabin."

"Ah," Atobe breathed. "That's right, my cabin _is _next to a river, isn't it?"

Oishi fretted. "Wait, what makes you think we haven't already passed it?"

Tezuka checked his watch. "I have been there before. The shadows of the trees are at too steep of an angle at this time of the day."

At his words, more than one person turned and stared at Tezuka. Ryoma was pretty sure only Inui knew what Tezuka was talking about.

And so, with no better plan, they did as Tezuka said. Ryoma wasn't even sure how the captain knew if they were going in the right direction but at least they were doing _something _instead of just wandering around pretending everything was fine. A couple hours of rocks, roots and everything else that was making the hike harder than it should be, Ryoma was pretty sure they were even more lost now than ever before even if they _had _found the river that Tezuka mentioned and were currently following up the stream.

"I think we should camp out for tonight," Fuji said quietly. "It's too dark to see and it's dangerous walking up the mountain at night."

Tezuka pursed his lips. "I had wanted to reach the cabin today but I guess that is the best choice."

"Oh thank god," Momoshiro said with an exaggerated groan as he dropped his backpack. "I thought I was going to die."

"Speak for yourself," Ryoma huffed.

"Ne, Ochibi, you do know that you could have always abandoned your backpack, right?"

Ryoma glared at his red-haired senpai. "Kagome will find out and she will kill me."

"Higurashi-san is too kind to do that," Momoshiro protested.

Tezuka and Ryoma exchanged glances. They knew his cousin; not only did she have a temper, she also has the ability to fight to back it up.

"Please tell me she at least packed some food," Momoshiro moaned, already ate all his snacks. "I'm so hungry right now." As if to emphasized his words, his stomach growled and was joined in seconds later by more than one person. They all then directed their gaze towards Ryoma's backpack in anticipation.

Ryoma frowned but reached over to unzip the main compartment of his backpack. He stared, blinked and then a slow grin spread across his lips. Sending a quick prayer of thanks to his extremely thoughtful cousin, Ryoma pulled the sleeping bag and a portable tent from his backpack, practically hearing the mouths of his teammates and that monkey king dropping open behind him. His lovely cousin, much to his delight, was also thoughtful enough to to pack a first aid kit—even if he was sure Oishi-senpai already had that covered—an umbrella, blankets, matches, a pot, a pillow, and much to Momoshiro's delight, cupped noodles.

"Yes!" he cried. "Echizen! You have _got _to share!"

"Only the food," Ryoma responded with a glare. "You're staying away from the sleeping bag and the tent." It was bad enough that they were going to camp out for the night, he didn't need itchy bug bites that were only going to distract him later.

Too hungry to care, Momoshiro nodded eagerly. Later, he'll argue with Echizen, saying that as a senpai, the sleeping bag should go to him but right now, food was the most important thing.

"Higurashi-san sure is thorough," Oishi murmured, gratefully.

"And to think we made fun of ochibi when he first brought his backpack!" Kikumaru said.

Tezuka gave the pile of necessities a look over before turning around to face his companions. "Kikumaru, go get water for the pot. Fuji, Oishi and Inui, gather stones and start setting up an area for the fire. Momoshiro and Kaido, gather firewood and Atobe and Echizen, clear an area so we may camp out for out for tonight.

Everyone set off at once, except for Atobe who gave a strangled gasp. "Manual labor? _Me?"_

Tezuka glared. "Atobe."

Atobe stared at Tezuka for a moment but it was clear that Tezuka wasn't going to change his mind. With a huff, Atobe slunk away, growling unsavory things under his breath. With one brat out of the way, Tezuka turned towards Ryoma, eyeing him with raised eyebrows.

"I brought the backpack," Ryoma said, lifting his nose and glaring, challenging the older man to deny that just _bringing the backpack _wasn't a task in itself.

Tezuka huffed but turned away, following Atobe.

Smirking, Ryoma leaned back against his backpack, watching his teammates and the stupid monkey king scurrying around in order to complete the task they have been assigned. "Wake me up when the food's ready," Ryoma said, closing his eyes. More than one set of glares was aimed in his direction.

Twenty minutes later, everyone was seated around a warm campfire with a cup of ramen noodles in their hands. "These noodles are beneath me," Atobe grumbled with a sniff.

"Then don't eat it, you stupid monkey," Ryoma huffed.

Atobe sniffed again but didn't bother arguing, not with his stomach attempting to imitate a whale's mating call.

"Is this even legal?" Oishi asked worriedly. He had a fear of the campfire spreading and them burning down the entire mountain. But then again, Tezuka was here so everything should be fine.

"No," Tezuka answered honestly. "However, if the smoke does alert someone, they'll be able to lead us back down the mountain, especially if we end up not finding the cabin."

Oishi panicked at the mere thought. "But we will, right?"

Tezuka frowned, staring at the moon. "I would assume so" he said, answering Oishi's questions. "But I also don't remember the mountain being this vast. I had assumed we would have reached the cabin before nightfall." Something in the distance howled, low and rumbling that made Tezuka think of Wakagami's growls when he was "sparring" with Higurashi.

"Are there wolves in this mountain?" Kikumaru asked, eyes darting around in fear.

"Oh yes," Atobe grinned. "Among other predators too. Like lions and leopards."

Kikumaru and Kaidou exchanged pinched, fearful looks.

Ryoma glared. "Lions and leopards aren't native to Japan, you fool. The only place you'll see them is the zoo."

"Well," Atobe shot back. "One of them could have escaped and bred, which would populated the entire mountain given enough time!"

"With what? A _monkey?"_

Fuji chuckled. "Now, now, that's enough you two. You guys need to finish your dinner and sleep early. We might have a long day ahead of us tomorrow and you both will need all the energy you have."

"We should take turns keeping watch," Inui murmured softly.

"Why?" Kikumaru asked, utterly panicked. "There aren't really any lions here, are there?"

"No," he responded. "There are, however, mountain bears and wolves. Better safe than sorry."

Ryoma shuddered, feeling as if there was a large weight on his chest. He wanted nothing more than to sleep and ignore it all. "I'm going to sleep first," he said, cleaning up his empty noodle cup and rolling out the tent.

"Scared?" Atobe taunted.

"Of course," he responded easily. "Nothing sounds scarier than your stupid lion-monkey hybrid."

Everyone sighed, and decided to let Atobe and Ryoma verbally fight out their frustrations as they cleaned everything up and began to turn in for the night. Ryoma set up his space, refusing to share and smirked when everyone laid on the ground, softened only by leaves and grass as he crawled into his tent and under his sleeping bag.

"Kaidou! Stop that!" Kikumaru whispered angrily, pressing against Oishi's warm back.

"I'm not doing anything!" Kaidou hissed.

"Then who the hell is hissing?" Momoshiro shot.

Kikumaru moaned. "Ooh, don't tell me there's snakes here too!"

"Echizen! You gotta share your tent!"

"I have a knife," Ryoma's muffled voice answered. "And I will use it."

After some cursing directed towards the youngest tennis player, everyone—except for Tezuka, who had volunteered to take the first watch—fell into an uneasy sleep.

* * *

><p>Ryoma woke up when the ground underneath him <em>rumbled. <em>He had slept through earthquakes before and wouldn't have been surprised if he had slept through this one. For some reason, _something, _and he was sure it wasn't the rumble, had woke him. He blinked blurry eyes as he sat up slowly, joints cracking as he did so.

"Get up," Tezuka's voice came from outside his tent.

With a yawn, Ryoma wiggled out of his sleeping bag and crawled out of the tent, looking around and noticing that Tezuka was currently going through the process of waking everyone up.

"What's the matter?" Momoshiro mumbled, his words would have been incoherent if Ryoma wasn't a native speaker in sleep-talk himself. "We leaving already?"

"Tezuka?" Oishi asked. "Is something wrong?"

Tezuka stared into the sky. "It's too quiet," he said. _That _caught everyone's attention. Even if they weren't into hiking as much as Tezuka was, they knew that birds birds would have been singing this early in the morning. There was nothing, not a peep.

The ground rumbled again and everyone shot up, glancing around wearily.

"What _is _that?" Atobe asked, staring at a figure in the sky. It was much too long to be a bird and appeared to be _slithering _through the air rather than flying.

"A flying snake?" Fuji guessed.

Ryoma stared; with his eyes, he could see it better than most people. It was not a snake.

"Scary," Kikumaru mumbled. "It looks like some kind of monster."

His words made Ryoma pause and the ground rumbled again, this time stronger than before.

"_Well, according to Sesshomaru, demonic energy is returning to the world," _he remembered Kagome saying. _"So... At this rate, humans and demons might live side to side once again!"_

He swallowed.

There was a screeching sound in the area, and thunderous steps echoed across the mountain. Something was coming and whatever it was, it was big.

"Oh my god," Momoshiro said. "I hoped we wouldn't run into a mountain bear! Didn't we defeat one before? Quick! Everyone, grab a tennis racket!"

Just as he finished his sentence, something burst into the clearing. It wasn't a bear. Standing at about ten feet tall, it appeared to be heavily armored in large black scales. It's claws, about a foot in length each, swept across the trees in its path, slicing through them like they were paper. Everyone stared with wide eyes as it turned its attention towards the group, sniffing the air like it just caught a the scent of a treat. Although Ryoma had never seen one before—besides Sesshomaru and Inuyasha but they really couldn't be compared to this beast—he knew it was a demon.

"What the hell kind of mountain bear is that?" Momoshiro squeaked.

"_Tezuka!"_ Oishi whispered in a panic.

"Don't make any sudden movements," Tezuka ordered.

The demon lifted its head into the air and let out a screech, showing the group the multiple rows of teeth it had. It head swiveled in their direction again and it bent down, readying itself to make a dash towards them.

"_Tezuka!" _Fuji said.

"Run!" Tezuka ordered, just as the demon pushed itself off the ground.

Everyone ran in the same direction, not wanting to split up and come across others like it alone. Knowing their luck, they would too. The demon proved to be much faster than it looked and was gaining ground quickly.

"What the hell is that?" Kaidou asked, a fearful look on his face.

"It's not a mountain bear!" Kikumaru responded.

Ryoma tossed a glance over his shoulder and quickened his pace. Any closer and the demon would be in clawing range and they would be sliced into pieces. There was no way they would outrun the demon for long. With that in mind, and the fact that Kagome had mentioned that they had similar powers, Ryoma skidded to a stop, spinning around to face the demon.

"Ryoma!" Tezuka called when he noticed that the young tennis player was no longer with them. Everyone stopped immediately, turning around and hoping that the brat of Seigaku wasn't monster meat.

Before anyone could grab Ryoma and resume running the hell away, the demon jumped at the young man, claws out and ready to rip apart its pray. Everyone watched in horror. However, after years of playing tennis, Ryoma's reflexes were better than average and he managed to dodge the attack and grab a hold of the demon's arm.

"_What the hell are you doing?!"_ Momoshiro screeched.

Grunting, Ryoma narrowed his eyes as the demon swung around, hoping to through the human off of him. Ryoma held on tightly, feeling the air around him crackling with energy. Blue sparks began dancing off his skin and surrounding him in a protective barrier. The demon screeched again, this time in pain and it tried to throw Ryoma off of it with renewed effort. He wasn't about to let go.

The blue of Ryoma's purification powers wasn't diminishing and was, in fact growing stronger and stronger. Finally, the demon gave one last screech before disappearing, leaving nothing but dust behind. Ryoma fell onto his knees with a gasp. "How the hell does she do it?" he managed, remembering the fight between Kagome and Sesshomaru. He felt exhausted!

"What. The. Hell?" Momoshiro whispered in awe.

Before they could celebrate their continued survival, another demon, looking exactly like the first, landed onto the ground between Ryoma and everyone else. It roared, making everyone tremble with fright. It's attention, however, was zeroed in on Ryoma, still tired and unable to move with the same agility as earlier. Without another warning, the demon shot forward.

Ryoma stared, eyes wide. _Kagome!_


	22. Round One

**Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha, Prince of Tennis or any of its characters.**

**New Beginnings  
><strong>**[22] Round One**

"Sesshomaru!" Kagome called, bursting into the vast office, his ever annoying secretary trailing behind her in protest.

She had woke up that morning, earlier than she ever had before with her powers out of control and swirling around her, groaning Ryoma's name. Something was wrong with her cousin and she wasn't about to let Sesshomaru's secretary stop her. Her feelings were hardly ever wrong. Something was wrong, she knew and Ryoma was in danger.

Eyes snapping upwards at the priestess' wild-eyed look, Sesshomaru dismissed the secretary with a wave of his hand. "What's wrong?" he asked.

Kagome blinked, surprised to see Inuyasha in his human form wearing a suit, sitting in his brother's office. However, she shook herself from the surprising image and turned her attention back towards Sesshomaru. "It's Ryoma," she said. "There's something wrong!"

Sesshomaru frowned. "Where is he?"

Kagome bit her lips. "Somewhere in the mountains, I thing. Survival training apparently." Her face scrunched up in thought. "Um... monkey... monkey... Oh! Atobe-kun's cabin! They were heading to Atobe-kun's cabin somewhere in the mountains."

"Atobe?"

Kagome shrugged. "Apparently he's a really good tennis player? I don't really know!"

Turning towards his half-brother, Sesshomaru said, "Tessaiga is in the main dojo. I will contact you upon finding the location of the cabin and follow soon after."

"Right," Inuyasha muttered. He slipped the bracelet off his wrist and stuffed it into his pocket. "Come on, Kagome," he said, grabbing a hold of her hand and helping her onto his back. He opened a window and jumped out, onto the rooftop of a nearby building. "How did you know something was wrong?" he asked loudly, over the roar of the wind.

"I had a bad dream," Kagome admitted softly against his ear.

"Don't worry," Inuyasha said gruffly. "If the kid's anything like you, he'll be fine."

"God, I hope so."

* * *

><p>They arrived just in time to see a demon attempting to jump onto Ryoma who managed to dodge—barely—by rolling away. Kikumaru, being the fastest, managed to reach Ryoma in time to pull him away from the demon's deadly claws just as the demon struck again. Everyone else grabbed what they could, sticks and stones, and hurled them at the demon, hoping to distract it.<p>

It did little good and the demon swept it's claws in Ryoma's direction once again. Kagome watched in horror but sparks of blue purification energy crackled through the air, catching the demon by surprise and making it jump backwards in shock.

"Ryoma!" Kagome called out.

Everyone turned in the direction of her voice. Inuyasha descended from the air, his long, rough, silver hair flowing freely in the wind. "Kagome," Ryoma breathed, surprised and watched with wide eyes as the priestess raised her arm up, fingers wrapped around the slender surface of a bow. She let loose the arrow notched in her bow, striking the ground next to Ryoma with deadly precision.

"Is that Higurashi-san?" Momoshiro gasped in awe. Eyes blazing and hair flowing, she looked like some sort of warrior princess. The image, unfortunately was ruined by the yankee look-a-like she was currently riding on.

"This is quiet an interesting day," Fuji murmured. Only his glittering blue eyes showed his own awe and shock.

Inuyasha pulled Tessaiga from its sheath, its weight familiar in his hands. "Piss off," he swore, bring the transformed sword onto the demon just as Kagome slid off his back and ran towards her cousin. Much to his surprise, however, the demon fang bounced off the armored skin of the demon, leaving not even a scratch. "Shit—" he managed to get out before the demon turned, sweeping him off his feet with its tail and knocking him into the trees.

"Stay here," Kagome ordered her cousin and his wide-eyed companions. "Don't go past my arrow, it should keep you safe." She turned, watching as Inuyasha pull himself from a tree with a groan. "Inuyasha? Are you all right?"

"How's an arrow going to—"

"Momoshiro!" Tezuka said sternly. "Be quiet!"

"How strong is your barrier?" the half-demon asked, raising his sword high above his head.

"Strong enough." Kagome assured as she stepped behind the barrier her arrow had created.

With a wicked grin, Inuyasha brought his sword down. _Wind Scar _ripped through the air, heading straight for the demon. The demon roared as it engulfed it but as the energy faded, it appeared completely unharmed. The demon's armored skin was proving to be much stronger than they had first thought.

"I think I'm going to faint," Oishi said, his voice tight and sounding as if he really _was _going to faint.

The demon screeched loudly in Inuyasha's direction who raised Tessaiga again only to hear another demonic screech from behind him. "What the fuck is going on?" he cried out, spinning around and raised his sword in defense just in time as another demon crashed into him.

Satisfied that the half-demon was occupied with an opponent of his own, the armored demon turned its attention back towards the humans. It jumped towards them, claws out as the humans flinched away, ready to dodge it's attack. The demon's only warning was the fact that the priestess' gaze did not so much as to flicker, despite the oncoming attack. It slammed into the powerful barrier. It screeched in pain and jumped away as powerful sparks of purification shot through the surface of the demon. If it had stayed in contact with the barrier any longer, even its stronger armored scales would do little to stop the purification.

"Stay behind the barrier," Kagome said, tightening her hold on her bow.

"Higurashi-san?" Tezuka asked, alarmed.

"Kagome."

"Don't," she said, turning to stare at her cousin, knowing what he was thinking. "You don't know what you're dealing with."

With that said, she notched her arrow into place, stepped out of the barrier and let it fly. Unfortunately, even backed up with purification powers, the arrows wasn't able to pierce the demon's tough skin, bouncing off upon contact.

"Kagome!" Inuyasha called, busy with his own battle. "Just stay behind that stupid barrier! I'll handle these small-fries."

Another demon burst through the trees and into their field of vision.

"What the fuck?" he swore. Maybe he should stop talking, where the hell were all these demons coming from?

"Just concentrate on your own battle!" she shouted back, dodging the demon's claws but didn't see the tail coming.

Kagome grunted at the impact, seeing stars upon hitting the ground. Kagome rolled onto her stomach, her arrows falling from their quiver. She looked around but her bow was out of her reach and the demon was already making it's way towards her to finish its job. Grabbing an arrow, Kagome jumped onto the demon as it got close enough, catching it completely off guard.

"You stupid demon," she grunted out as she climbed onto its head, dodging its snapping jaws as it flailed around, trying to throw the priestess off. Hands wrapped tightly around her arrow, Kagome thrust it into the demon's eye with as much force as she could manage, sending her purification energy into its body. "Why the hell are you even attacking me?" she asked, as the demon screeched and then was purified into sparkling ashes. She was supposed to bring balance back to the world after all.

Falling roughly onto her knees, Kagome looked up in horror and more and more demons jumped, ran, and flew their way into the small clearing. "What the hell is going on?" she whispered.

"Wakagami-san!" Tezuka called out sharply in alarm.

Kagome turned her head, just in time to see a demon behind her half-demon friend. "Sit!" she shouted, over the cries of all the various demons. Inuyasha went down swearing just as the demon's claws swiped across the air where his head had been moments ago.

More and more demons were coming into the clearing, all of them intent to kill the small cluster of humans and single half-demon. It reminded Kagome of Naraku's army of lower-classed demons. She paled in realization. Like Naraku had before, someone was controlling them, promising false powers and sending them to do the person's dirty work.

Kagome dodged an attack from an airborne demon, looking around for some sort of weakness. Inuyasha's wind scar could only do so much, there wasn't much time before they got tired. Demons jumped at her, attempting to all strike at once but Kagome was ready, her barrier purifying those that came in contact.

A nearby snake demon hissed, jaw opening and spraying out venomous poison in her direction. Kagome stared with wide eyes and quickly took a step back in order to bring up her barrier, she didn't want the snake demon trapped in the barrier with her, after all. Unfortunately for her, her foot caught the nearby corpse of another demon and she went down. Kagome could only roll herself up, cover her head and hope for the best.

The wind swept past her and Kagome looked up to see a familiar face.

"Really, priestess, and to think I had just warned you," he drawled.

"Is that Sasabe?" Inui asked.

"What in the world?" Momoshiro breathed.

"Sasabe-kun!" Kagome cried out. She didn't think she would ever be happy seeing the demon with claws poised dangerously out in front of her.

Sasabe hummed and wiped the acidic venom off his body with a grimace. While his body was immune, his clothes were not and he rather not fight his fellow demons to the death in the nude.

"You stupid Naraku-spawn!" Inuyasha shouted in the midst of his battle. "Get away from Kagome!"

Sasabe rolled his eyes. "He must feel so proud, shouting nonsense when he is in no position to do so."

Kagome stood up, brushing the dirt off her skirt as she did so. "Where are all these demons coming from?" she asked.

"The Jewel, I presume. It's too early for entire demons to appear. The witch must have pulled the demons from their eternal battle with the priestess Midoriko." He dodged an attack, pulling Kagome with him as he did so, shielding the young priestess as the snake demon attempted yet another venomous spray. He narrowed his eyes and shed his human form, his lower half exploding into familiar tentacle-like limps and shooting out in order to rip the snake demon apart.

"Octopus?" Kikumaru whispered in awe.

Kagome paled as a tentacle wrapped around her middle, bringing her into the air and into Sasabe's protective arms. He looked down at her curiously as she shuddered. "Sorry," she said meekly. "It's just... you... you reminded me of Naraku."

He nodded in understanding. "That's to be expected."

Kagome sighed and looked around. The clearing was pretty much filled with demons now and there seemed to be no end of them. "Oh!" she cried, pointing. "My bow's over there! Could you bright it?"

Sasabe nodded. One of his tentacles wrapped around her bow and scooped up her arrows before bringing them to her.

"Thanks!" she beamed, giving the limb a affectionate pat. "That must be _so_ useful!"

Even with the three of them killing demon after demon, the clearing never seemed to be running out of them. "Where the fuck is Sesshomaru?" Inuyasha groaned. "The bastard is taking forever!"

"We should flee. This is a battle we cannot win," Sasabe respond.

"Well, we can't," Kagome said, "Unless you can somehow get everyone out."

Sasabe looked at the group of humans, huddling in the priestess' barrier. "They're only human."

"Sasabe-kun!" she cried in horror. "How could you? They were your teammates!"

He shrugged nonchalantly but then a jolt shot through him and he fell to his knees in pain.

"What's wrong?" the priestess cried, rushing to his side, in order to defend him while he was distracted. "Sasabe?" She pulled him into the safety of her barrier which allowed him to pass despite him being a demon. His former tennis teammates took a step closer to the duo, curious.

"Naraku-spawn?" Even Inuyasha sounded a bit worried, appearing at Kagome's side. Everyone stared at the trio in question.

Sasabe groaned, he could feel the jewel calling for him, its call was stronger than ever. Not to mention... "The witch, she's attempting to use the jewel to control me like she has controlled the demons."

"_What?"_ Inuyasha pulled Kagome away in alarm who only shook her arm out of his grasp and made her way towards Sasabe again.

"It won't be long now," Sasabe murmured, grunting again. Damn, that witch was more persistent than he first thought. What a will power.

Kagome looked at the demons outside her barrier, roaring their frustrations into the sky. She bit her lip. "Are you going to..." she trailed off, not knowing how to ask the question.

"At this rate, yes," Sasabe answered honestly.

Her eyebrows scrunched up in worry. "But—"

"You must kill me before it gets to that point."

More than one person person gasped in shock and disbelief.

"_Kill?" _Momoshiro screeched. "What are you talking about. Higurashi-san wouldn't—"

"_Shut up," _Ryoma hissed.

"I won't! You can't—"

"Don't get all friendly with me now," Sasabe said, grunting as another wave of pain hit him. When Kagome didn't answer he looked up at her. He sighed when he saw her expression. While he wasn't familiar with her personally, he knew enough about her understand what that expression meant. She was trying to think of a way to save him.

Inuyasha stared at Kagome who was doing nothing to hide the tears rolling down her cheeks. Leave it to Kagome to cry over someone she didn't like only a week ago. "I'll do it," he said with a grimace, tightening his hold on Tessaiga.

"Don't be a fool!" Sasabe bit out in alarm, reeling back from Inuyasha. "Did you not listen to my story? I am half of Naraku's soul and he created my body! My body is made up of multiple lower-class demons. The minute you cut me down, you'll release them. Do you want to die?"

Inuyasha winced. "Oh."

"I am as much of a shape-shifter as Naraku was," he said, turning his attention back to the crying priestess. "Would it make you feel better if I looked like him?" His gaze slid in Ryoma's direction. "Unless you would like the honor of purifying me and sparing your cousin the burden." Ryoma looked as if he was seriously considering purifying the demon in Kagome's place but Sasabe hoped he didn't take up the offer. While his powers were strong, he had little control of them and if Ryoma manage to only purify _half _of him, he might as well ask Inuyasha to cut him down.

"No," Kagome whispered, her entire body quivering. "I'll do it." She wiped the tears from her face with a dirtied sleeve, leaving a smudge of dirt behind. With hard eyes she took a step towards Sasabe and dropped down to her knees. She pulled the demon into an embrace, feeling his shuddering body as he fought against the call of the Shikon. "Your name," she whimpered. "Tell me your name." Her entire body was glowing slightly, her powers having risen from the depths of her body and surrounding the two of them like a protective blanket.

"Yukishiro."

An unnatural wind picked up around them, picking up in both speed and strength. as the light surrounding them continued to grow brighter. Ryoma narrowed his eyes. He was pretty sure that there was something rather strange about the entire situation, especially since he had purified a demon on his own only a few minutes ago.

Sasabe—or rather, Yukishiro's eyes widened in shock. Apparently Ryoma wasn't the only one that found the entire situation odd. "Wait, Kagome-sama, what are you—"

"Yukishiro," Kagome said, her voice low and seemed to vibrate with the power held within her body. "Sleep."

Eyes rolling upwards, the demon fell limp in her embrace. And very carefully, Kagome laid him down onto the ground. She stared at the unconscious demon for a moment, smoothing a stray strand of hair out of his face. Behind her, the demons were throwing their bodies against her barrier, hitting it and falling back before they were purified. It was a continuous cycle and there seemed to be an infinite number of demons. "Back off," she snarled. Her barrier immediately responded to her anger, purification power flaring outwards, turning any demon within range into dust.

Kaidou hissed lowly, taking a step backwards despite himself. His first impression on Echizen's cousin was that he hoped that she didn't distract the younger tennis player from his tennis. He was, after all, one of the few tennis players he actually respected. His second was, Momoshiro being distracted wasn't much better. And now... now he didn't know what to think of her or of their their current situation.

Inuyasha laid a comfortable hand on her shoulder. "How long will your barrier hold?"

Kagome frowned, standing up again. She eyed the demons who apparently hadn't learned their lesson, throwing their body against the barrier despite what had happened to their former comrades only moments ago. "Not much longer. When did Sesshomaru say he was going to arrive?"

"Keh, don't count on the bastard." He looked over into Kagome's eyes, which lack its usual warmth. "Come on, let's kick some ass."

* * *

><p>Without Yukishiro the fight was a lot harder. There were demons that even Tessaiga wasn't able to cut, forcing Inuyasha to relay on Kagome's purification arrows. On one hand, with the two of them fighting, the demons were ignoring the defenseless humans beyond the barrier, so Ryoma and the rest of his teammates could live longer. On the other hand, not only was Kagome running out of arrows, her and Inuyasha were quickly becoming exhausted.<p>

Even to the untrained eye, it was obvious that the supernatural duo was on the losing side. Tezuka prayed that Wakagami—the elder one, that is—would make his appearance soon; he had no desire seeing two acquaintances sliced into ribbons by something that looked as if it came out of the television.

"Kagome!" Ryoma gasped.

Tezuka turned and everyone watched with building horror as a demon sped toward her unguarded back. His fingers twitched, he was itching to do something—_anything_—even something as ridiculous and useless as serving a tennis ball into the oncoming demon's face. In the background, he could hear Momoshiro and Kikumaru screeching loudly, trying to catch Kagome's attention, but the their calls was drowned out by the voice of the battle.

Then without warning, Tezuka found himself watching Ryoma burst through the safety of the barrier, speeding his way towards Kagome. "Echizen!" he called out sharply.

Ryoma ignored the cries of his teammates behind him, jumping over snapping jaws, dodging claws and pretty much avoiding the demons with such agility, even Tezuka was surprised. He crashed into Kagome, just in time to avoid getting her head swept off by the demon but not enough to get her completely unharmed.

Large, deadly claws, oozing something sticky and purple swept across Higurashi's back, splattering the ground with her blood.

"Oh my god," Oishi squeaked.

The cousins crashed into the ground, Ryoma grabbing and twisting his cousin around in midair, cushioning Kagome in their fall. The demon pulled back a claw, bringing it down on the pair with a roar only to get swallowed up in a fury of angry blue sparks that exploded from Echizen's outstretched hand.

"Kagome?" Ryoma breathed, rolling his cousin over and holding her up. He winced, he could feel her blood coating his fingers.

"Fuckin' shit!" Inuyasha swore, jumping down in front of them protectively. "Get her behind the barrier, kid!"

Ryoma wasted no time as the demons behind him were rising upwards, snarling and hissing, excited about the priestess' downfall. He shook his head and picked Kagome up, grimacing at the feel of her blood dripping down his arm. He was no Inui and wasn't sure how much blood a human could lose before dying but he knew enough to realize that Kagome was losing too much too fast.

He reentered the barrier, his teammates giving him space, choosing to keep quiet about the obvious worried expression on Ryoma's face. Even Atobe kept his mouth shut. He placed Kagome down as carefully as he could, rolling her over onto her stomach and stared at the remains of Kagome's back. "What do I do?" he asked, his voice tight.

"Put pressure on it," Tezuka said, pulling his shirt off and pressing it onto her back, ignoring Higurashi's groan of pain. "Stop the bleeding for now, we'll worry about everything else later." He eyed the purple goo, frowning and hoped that it wasn't what he think it was. He didn't know if Higurashi's human body could handle poison, especially at that amount, from a demon.

"I-I can sew it up. Where's a first aid kit?" Oishi asked, coming out of his shock.

Fuji shook his head. "It's outside the area we're supposed to stay in."

At that Ryoma looked up and looked around, trying to catch a glimpse of his backpack beyond the bodies of demons.

"You're not planning on going back there, are you?" Atobe asked, shocked. Ryoma had witnessed first-hand what the monsters beyond the barrier could do. But then again, hadn't the younger man gotten rid of a couple with strange blue sparks?

Kagome groaned again, mumbling something under her breath. "...ma..."

Ryoma leaned closer. "Kagome?"

Behind her eyelids, her eyes were moving rapidly as if she was dreaming. "Ryo... ma. A... way," she murmured, her body began to glow a light pink. "Get away."

Ryoma blinked. "What?"

And then light around Kagome's body faded, sinking into the depths of her skin before exploding outwards, throwing everyone around her away. Ryoma crashed into a tree, he could feel several ribs cracking upon impact. The last thing he remembers before falling unconscious was every demon Inuyasha had been fighting beforehand, being purified into dust.

**So, I do proofread my chapters and everything but every single time I go back and reread it, I always find another mistake. I apologize for that. Maybe I should get a beta...**


	23. The Inner Workings

**Sorry for the long wait guys! I've been super stressed out lately so I haven't had the heart to write. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha, Prince of Tennis or any of its characters.**

**New Beginnings  
><strong>**[23] The Inner Workings**

Ryoma woke up in an unfamiliar room, shooting upwards in the large bed, shouting Kagome's name. He looked around wildly before forcing himself to calm down. He wasn't in the middle of the forest, which meant, after Kagome's... explosion, they must have somehow gotten to safety. He was pretty sure he was either in Atobe or Sesshomaru's mansion, judging from the decorations and interior design of the room. Only idiots with money and nothing to do would have rooms like this.

He got up slowly, looking over himself, mindful of any injuries he may have gotten when Kagome blasted him into a tree. Ryoma frowned, not only did his ribs feel absolutely fine—he distantly remembered them cracking, after all—he didn't even have any scratches on him. Assuming that he was in Sesshomaru's house... he shuddered. Rubbing his hands over his goose bump-covered arms, he hoped that the older demon had kept his tongue well away from his body.

Holding back another shudder, Ryoma opened the door that lead to—what he assumed to be—the hall. Immediately, the scent of food swept over him pleasantly. He followed the scent, knowing that it was going to lead him face to face with Momoshiro wolfing down whatever food was placed in front of him.

He wasn't wrong.

It took Ryoma a full minute of standing in the doorway staring at Momoshiro in disgust before someone finally noticed him.

"Ochibi!" Kikumaru squealed, "You're okay!"

Ryoma narrowed his eyes, taking in the odd group. Although everyone was gathered around the same general area, it was obvious that there was a divide between the two groups. Kagome's circle of friends were all seated on one side of the room while his teammates (and Atobe) were seated on the other side. Inui, however, had isolated himself in a lone corner, huddled and scribbling madly in his notebook. Ryoma had no doubt that Kagome, her adventures, and the existence of demons have been explained to everyone.

The one person that Ryoma wanted to see, however was not there. He frowned. "Where is Kagome?" he asked, ignoring his senpai in favor of Kagome's friends. If anyone knew where his cousin was, it would be them.

"Still resting," Miroku answered helpfully.

Ryoma's frown deepened. "I want to see her."

"Not now," Sesshomaru cut in. "She mustn't be disturbed."

Ryoma narrowed his eyes.

"She has been healed," Sesshomaru said, as if reading Ryoma's mind. "She will be fine, you have nothing to worry about."

Normally, Ryoma would further press the issue but it struck him that what Sesshomaru really meant was that he had healed her, himself. The young tennis prodigy had to hold back another shudder at the thought. He wasn't going to ask Sesshomaru to confirm it, and he was most certainly _not _going to ask him about his _own _wounds. Some things, he decided was much better left unknown.

"Feh," Inuyasha grumbled. "Wench would have gotten her head sliced off if the kid hadn't pushed her out of the way."

"Her reflexes have slowed," Sesshomaru said. "That is to be expected. She had been away for a year, after all."

"Speaking of which," his half-brother growled. "Where the hell were you anyway?"

Sesshomaru narrowed his eyes at the implication. "I was under the assumption that you could handle a couple of demons. The Shikon's presence has been condensed. I was attempting to find it."

"The Shikon," Inui muttered, catching everyone's attention. He turned towards the demons, glasses glinting in the light. "Also known as the Jewel of Four Souls, correct?" And then, without giving anyone a chance to answer, he continued, "Legend says that the Shikon Jewel is actually a physical personification of a powerful priestess' soul. For a—"

"Right, right," Sasabe—Yukishiro interrupted. Having been Inui's teammate for a number of weeks, he was not unfamiliar with the senior's tendency to ramble. He had, however, thought he had left _that _behind when he quit the team.

Ryoma raised his eyebrows. "You're still alive," he noticed for the first time. He almost hadn't recognize the demon. His hair appeared darker and his eyes, which Ryoma remembered had always been a light brown, was most definitely red. And glowing. His features have paled too, considerably and almost seemed sickly white but Ryoma was pretty sure that it was the demon's normal complexion.

Yukishiro rolled his eyes at Ryoma's tone. "Unfortunate, isn't it? That priestess of yours made a fool of me, knocked me unconscious and to make matters worst, I woke up just in time to crash into a tree when her powers decided to imitate an active volcano." More than one person winced at the visual. Ryoma, especially; he remembered his own tree.

"You crashed into a tree," Fuji asked, eyes opened. "I'm amazed you got away unscathed."

"Of course not," Yukishiro responded. "My healing abilities surpasses yours by far. And while broken bones take longer to heal, Lord Sesshomaru took care of it, as he did with all your wounds." He looked at everyone pointedly.

Ryoma, in an attempt to get himself comfortable, banged his knee against the coffee table upon hearing Yukishiro's news before falling back onto the sofa with a bounce. He felt a muscle below his eye twitch. Next to him, Tezuka began paling rapidly. Considering the fact that besides, Ryoma, Tezuka was the only other person (in _his _circle of friends) that knew how Sesshomaru healed, he had a pretty good idea what was going on through the tennis captain's head.

"What?" Oishi exclaimed, shocked. He gave himself and his teammates a look-over. "We were hurt?"

Sesshomaru raised an eyebrow, mockingly and snorted softly through his nose. "You do not honestly believe that you have the ability to walk away unscathed after being thrown ten feet through the air, do you?"

There was something in his tone that made Oishi feel small and insignificant. Actually, Ryoma was pretty sure Oishi wasn't the only one feeling small and insignificant at the moment. The vice-captain flushed in response. "W-well... I didn't mean—"

"_All _of you fainted?" Inuyasha exclaimed, snickering in amusement. "Bunch of wusses."

"I'm sorry," Sango deadpanned, "but I must have imagined carrying your unconscious body back."

The half-demon immediately quieted. "I wasn't completely unconscious!" he argued.

_I'm going to hurl, _Ryoma thought, feeling his head spin. It didn't help that Momoshiro—blissfully unaware—was inhaling the food in front of him. He could actually feel the familiar pressure pressing against the back of his throat. Ryoma hoped that he wouldn't lose the battle against his stomach; he had no desire to ruin Sesshomaru's furniture. He was pretty sure that the demon lord would not spare him—Kagome's cousin or not.

"You... healed us?" Tezuka muttered, looking up at Sesshomaru, his unnaturally pale features matching the demon lord's.

Sesshomaru tilted his head and frowned. While he was not personally familiar with the human, he was sure that Tezuka was not so stupid that he needed to ask for confirmation on something Yukishiro had so explicitly stated only moments ago. It was then that he took notice of Tezuka's pale features. Realization dawned and Sesshomaru turned to look at Kagome's cousin in confirmation.

The young boy looked as if he was about to throw up.

Sesshomaru immediately scowled. "I did not heal you the way you think I did."

The room quieted at the rather odd statement. Inuyasha's head snapped up in confusion. "Huh?"

Ryoma raised his eyebrows.

Blinking a couple of times, it took a moment before Inuyasha understood the situation. He snickered in amusement, biting the insides of his cheeks from full out laughing.

"What's going on?" Miroku whispered.

"The brats think that Sesshomaru licked their wounds."

Everyone froze at once, suddenly very interested.

Sesshomaru scowled even harder, his facial expression darkening to the point that even Yukishiro was shifting uncomfortably in his seat. "To heal by _licking one's wounds_—as the half-breed so kindly put it—is reserved between pack members _only. _I would not lower myself to even touch your pitiful human flesh, much less grace it with my saliva."

His tone made it sound as if he believed his saliva was made out of liquid gold. The entire situation would have been rather amusing if the demon didn't look so angry and dangerous. No one dared laugh, except for Inuyasha who was more or less used to Sesshomaru beating him up for various reason. He could handle another broken jaw.

"Trust me," Ryoma grumbled. "No one wants your saliva anywhere near them." He refused to look at Sesshomaru and thought, _Except for maybe Kagome._

"Pack," Sango whispered breathlessly, in awe. "Kagome is pack?" She stared up at Sesshomaru, eyes wide with shock.

Sesshomaru eyed Sango but refused to confirm.

"What does that mean?" Miroku whispered.

"Dog demons," explained Sango, recalling information she knew from her previous life, "so rarely allow outsiders to become part of their 'pack'". Packs are usually centered around related family members so if an outsider is accepted, you can bet that they are very, _very _important to the individual that accepted them."

Miroku's brows furrowed. "It's rare?" he asked. He knew only of two dog demons and Inuyasha and his brother didn't seem to have any trouble accepting outsiders.

"No," Sango said, shaking her head, knowing exactly what Miroku was thinking. "We were never part of Inuyasha's pack. Packs have a very strict social hierarchy so if we _were _pack, there would have been a definite alpha, beta, and omega and each one of us would have to complete duties expected of us." She watch Miroku nod in understanding. The other humans were staring at her, although not completely understanding what she was talking about, they were obviously still very interested in the topic. "For example, sometimes Kagome would cook, sometimes I will, other times, you." But if we _were _a pack, it would be one of our duties as members of a pack to be the chef."

"Interesting," Miroku rubbed his chin, deep in thought.

"Now that I think about it," Sango said slowly. "Back then, Sesshomaru's pack probably only consisted of him and Inuyasha. In terms of strength, Sesshomaru would be alpha and Inuyasha beta." Inuyasha snorted at the statement but otherwise did not interrupt. "But since Inuyasha isn't the type to just listen to Sesshomaru, it was probably seen as a challenge to Sesshomaru's position." She rolled her eyes, "No wonder you guys fought so much."

"It wasn't that simple," Inuyasha protested with a low growl, turning his nose up into the air. "Bastard wanted my sword!"

Sango rolled her eyes again.

As interesting as this is," Miroku said smoothly, with a grin that immediately made Sango narrow her eyes in suspicion. "Just exactly _when _did you start considering Kagome-sama as part of your pack, Lord Sesshomaru?" He waggled his eyebrows suggestively, forcing Sango to intervene with a hard jab to his sides.

Silent the entire time while the inner workings of his species was being dissected, Sesshomaru followed his brother's lead and turned his face away and his nose up into the air. Sango had to hold back a giggle at the image; like Kagome always said, the two of them were much more alike than either of them dare to admit.

"Keh, that's an interesting thought," Inuyasha said with a lopsided grin. "You and Kagome never had much interaction in the past." He shrugged. "But I don't really care, I stopped questioning things when Kagome's involved a long time ago. She has the weirdest ability to make people do things no one expected." He narrowed his eyes at Yukishiro who rolled his eyes.

Silence. It was clear that Sesshomaru wasn't going to even bother giving them a hint. He certainly was not enjoying the current direction of the conversation.

"So... Kagome's pack," Ryoma said, the unfamiliar term rolling off his tongue hesitantly. "What's her position?" At the rate Kagome's relationship with Sesshomaru was going, Ryoma needed to make sure that Sesshomaru wouldn't do his cousin harm, mentally since it was obvious that the young priestess could handle him physically. Kagome definitely did not deserve to go through another two-timing sort of but not really boyfriend.

Sesshomaru blinked.

"Alpha, obviously," Sango answered immediately. She couldn't imagine Kagome being anything else. Besides, now that she thought about it, for the longest time, Kagome was always the one that both brothers would listen to. She was the one that was never afraid to step between them when a fight broke out, she was the one that was able to _stop _their infamous brawls. Inuyasha, she knew only listened because he knew that despite her innocent looks and sweet smiles, Kagome was something to be feared. Sango wasn't too familiar with Sesshomaru but she knew for a fact that no matter how fearful Kagome could be, Sesshomaru wouldn't be afraid of her like Inuyasha kind of was. As a full-blooded dog demon, he was synced with his instincts in ways Inuyasha could never be; Sesshomaru would only listen to the young priestess if she held a position equal or greater than his own.

"Wait," Inui cut in. "If Wakagami-sama is considered "alpha" and Higurashi-san is also "alpha", does that mean that they're... mates?" While he didn't know much about dog demons, they seemed to be pretty similar to modern canines.

Silence.

"_What the fuck?!" _Inuyasha shouted, jumping up from his seat, no longer nonchalant about the conversation. _"You're hitting on Kagome? You bastard!"_

Sesshomaru reacted immediately. "You foolish half-breed. A single word from a human who didn't know the existence of our kind mere moments ago and you _dare_—"

"_I'll kill you!" _Inuyasha screeched, reaching over the couch and pulling out Tessaiga. The fang transformed immediately and Inuyasha fell back into a familiar stance. He wasn't serious about killing his brother. Really. But it's been so long since Inuyasha had last—attempted to kick Sesshomaru's ass. It was like the good-old days again.

"What the hell is wrong with the two of them?" Atobe asked in horror, reeling backwards.

_Stupid senpai, _Ryoma thought with a glare in Inui's direction. _Always asking the stupid questions. _He narrowed his eyes when he saw Inui scribbling in his notebook, a mad smile stretching his lips. Ryoma tried again, _Stupid senpai, and his stupid pursuit for knowledge._

Sesshomaru cracked his knuckles and lengthened his claws. His clawed hand took on a familiar green glow and Tezuka and Ryoma immediately drew back, attempting to merge with the couch. There was no barrier to stop them from dissolving if the demon's poison were to come too close.

"You think you can touch me?" Sesshomaru questioned.

"I'll kick that sissy ass of yours!" Just watch—"

"What. Do. You. Two. Think. You're. _Doing?" _A new voice cut in, screeching the last word in anger.

Everyone turned towards the doorway. Kagome stood there, shaking fists clenched to her sides in anger. Ryoma was half pleased and half disgusted to see that Sesshomaru was speaking the truth and she was fully healed. Apparently, Kagome was pack and pack healed each other by giving the other saliva baths. He shuddered.

"Inuyasha, put Tessaiga away and your ass on the couch."

"But—"

"_Now!"_

Inuyasha huffed and grumbled but obeyed.

Kagome turned flashing eyes towards Sesshomaru who actually had to resist the urge to put some distance between himself and the priestess. When had she learned how to glare like _that? _"Retract that poison and those claws. Don't think I don't see them."

Raising a thin eyebrow and staring for a moment, Sesshomaru sighed softly through his nose but did as she commanded. Sango grinned. _Yep, definitely alpha,_ she thought. She turned towards Kagome. "Kagome-chan, how are you feeling?" she asked pleasantly.

Kagome eyed the large group for a moment before she turned towards Sango, "Pretty good considering the circumstances." With a yawn, she plopped herself onto an open space on the sofa, next to her cousin.

"You might want to take a shower," Ryoma muttered. _Or a hundred. _He remembered her blood pooling the ground beneath her; it must have taken a whole lot of saliva to heal a wound large. He shuddered again.

"Hm?" Kagome asked, "What was that?"

Ryoma didn't answer.

Sesshomaru cleared his throat. "Now that you have healed significantly, perhaps we should move onto more important and pressing matters." He glared at Ryoma who shrunk in his seat, making another attempt to merge into it.

"What important matters?"

Sesshomaru raised his eyebrows. "The Shikon Jewel. The demons that attacked you. The returning demonic energy. Why you left Naraku's spawn alive. I could go on..."

Kagome huffed. "I thought we discussed everything at Yukishiro-san's house the other day." She turned towards the demon and nodded in greeting. "Good to see you're alive," she said pleasantly.

He nodded in response. After seeing her display of anger and the immediate obedience of two strong demons, he wisely chose not to mention her throwing him into a tree.

"But the demons attacked you," Miroku pondered. "You would think that since you are to rebalance the world and bring back their kind, they would not make an attempt to kill you."

"Oh," Kagome breathed. "There's that. But Yukishiro-san said that they were the demons trapped in the jewel. The witch is still alive, obviously, and I'm assuming she pulled them out of the jewel to kill me."

Sesshomaru snorted. "She wishes to rid the world of demons and yet still use them to do her bidding. Pathetic."

"Then the Shikon has returned?" Sango asked, gazing up at the demon lord. He was the one that mention its presence condensing, after all.

Sesshomaru shook his head. "No, while its presence can be easily sensed when one is near the mountain, I do not believe that the witch had managed to pull it back completely as of yet."

"According to mythology," Inui interrupted, "The young priestess of legend—which I assume would be Higurashi-san—sacrificed all selfishness and demanded the Shikon Jewel's destruction."

She blushed slightly. _Priestess of legend? _That's the first time she has ever heard of it. "That's right, except not _destruction, _exactly. I demanded the Jewel to cease existing. The last time someone tried destroying the jewel, it was reborn into my body. Anyway, I don't know how much they told you but it didn't work in the end. The jewel is still here... sort of. Sometimes we feel it, sometimes we don't. It's like it's in a different dimension or something."

"Hmm... I see..."

"But—"

"Wait," Tezuka interrupted, turning a critical eye in Inui's direction. "I think Inui may have thought of something."

Kagome sat up. "What?"

"Did the Jewel actually disappear?" Inui asked. "When you made your demand, I mean."

"Well," Kagome answered hesitantly. "Yes... I mean, it was in my hand one second and gone the next."

"But since Naraku spawn came from the jewel when the witch decided to wipe demons off the face of the planet, it didn't actually disappear in the first place," Inuyasha added.

"Correct," Sesshomaru agreed. "But then why disappear at the priestess' command in the first place? And since its existence had not been erased, what exactly happened?"

"That doesn't make sense," Sango said. "There's no point for it to disappear if it wasn't going to actually disappear. And besides, Kagome didn't just tell the Shikon to disappear—which could be taken a number of ways—she also told it to "cease your existence" and there is really only one way you can take that."

"It does take wishes rather literally," Miroku agreed.

"I have a theory," Inui said. Immediately, everyone sat up, looking at the senior, curiously.

"Oh, please share," Kagome breathed, "because we have nothing and we've been trying to figure this out forever."

"To confirm, the Jewel of Four Souls is actually a soul. Is this fact true?"

Kagome nodded.

"I see," Inui mumbled. He opened his notebook and began writing.

"Continue," Sesshomaru said, eyeing the green notebook distastefully. "Or I will melt that, your pencil, _and _the hand attached to it." His eyes flashed dangerously.

Inui's glasses glinted in the light and he swallowed carefully. He had almost forgotten that he was in the presence of... non-humans. With great care, he closed his notebook and placed his pencil down on top of it before pushing it to the side. "According to the Law of Conservation of Energy," he began, "energy cannot be created or destroyed and it has been hypothesized that souls—if they exist—are the strongest of all energies."

"Okay," Kagome nodded. "Never been good at physics, but I'm following so far."

"That makes one of us," Inuyasha grumbled. "He lost me the moment he opened his mouth."

"Silence, half-breed," Sesshomaru hissed with a glare.

Inui blinked and then cleared his throat before continuing. "The Shikon is a soul," he repeated. "But since souls are most likely not physical matter, the Shikon Jewel itself must be the physical personification of a soul. I theorize that perhaps when you demanded the jewel to erase its existence, according the the Law of Conservation, it could not actually do so—so it did the next best thing—"

Kagome sucked in a horrified breath.

"—it erased its physical personification."

Silence.

"That would mean... the jewel itself is gone... but the soul..." Miroku looked around. "The most important part of the Shikon Jewel, Midoriko-sama's soul is all around us."

"Aw man," Kagome groaned softly. "I knew I should have taken my physics final instead of hunting down Naraku."

"That would also explain why a witch was able to pull it back into its physical state," Sesshomaru said, ignoring the young priestess. "As long as someone had the ability and knowledge..." Finally, they were getting somewhere.

"But it must have been hard to hold it in that state so it probably went back into its "soul state" after she made her wish."

They stared at each other silently.

"So..." Sango said softly. "What's the next move?"

Sesshomaru closed his eyes. "We mustn't allow the witch to pull the jewel back into physical state again."

Kagome groaned again. "Does that mean what I think it means?"

"You must find a way to pull the soul back into the physical realm so that it's in _your _hands," Yukishiro said.

"I knew it."


End file.
